"I propose that we revise our Constitution, not necessarily to federalize as yet, but to reduce the number of elective posts, whether local or national."
"I propose that we revise our Constitution, not necessarily to federalize as yet, but to reduce the number of elective posts, whether local or national."
A friend asked me, in reaction to my Monday article, what I was proposing when I said we had far too many elective positions, yet still get poor governance.
So in this article, I will state my case.
We have elections every three years: one for the president and his vice president; 12 senators; One district congressman, one provincial governor, his “vice” and board members which are grouped into districts as well; one mayor of a component city or municipality, his “vice” and a number of councilors. If we vote in a highly urbanized or chartered city that is independent of the province, we elect a city mayor, his vice mayor and councilors.
Alternatively, we have mid-term elections where except for the president and vice president, we vote for the same number of national and local officials. This is because we have 24 senators elected nationally and serve for six years, half of whom we vote for every three years.
We have to fill up a ballot with a multitude of names, shading the ovals beside their Comelec-assigned number, including parties under the party-list system to sit a third of congressmen in our House of Representatives. This year, there are some 170 or so, ad nauseam.
We spend billions upon billions for elections, which is of course needed in a functioning democracy. We have to declare Election Day a holiday, and this year, even the day after is one.
Candidates and their “financiers” spend billions upon billions every three years, and we even credit these huge expenditures for the year’s GDP growth.
And lest we forget, we also elect barangay chairmen and his seven kagawads. Plus those between the ages of 15 and a day before 18 by election time also elect Sangguniang Kabataan in every barangay.
Still, do we get good government in return? Ask a silly question, given our experience over the last three decades.
It is very difficult to remove the barangay, which is the smallest political unit. It probably is time we abolished the Sangguniang Kabataan, which only politicizes the relatively immature adolescents when they should be concentrating on their studies. And with “models” from barangay chairpersons to councilors to LGU heads, even national officials, do we really educate them in good governance, or teach them the ways and means of how to personally profit from public service?
We have far too many elections because we elect far too many officials, which just complicates governance and makes politics a national past-time, an obsession for many who would be better off working in private offices, in factories, in farms, and contribute to economic growth.
Thus I propose that we revise our Constitution, not necessarily to federalize as yet, but to reduce the number of elective posts, whether local or national.
First off, let us bring back the two-party system if we are to retain the presidential form of government. The multi-party system, which could work in a parliamentary form, has become a mere instrument for personal ambitions instead of being principle-driven.
Next, let us institute bloc voting for national and local executives, which means a president, a governor, a mayor will always be elected together with their “vice” candidate.
Let us elect senators by region. That would be less expensive for the candidates (less utang na loob to the oligarchs who fund national campaigns), and voters would be more familiar with their senators, their good and bad side. At say two per region, that would mean a Senate of 34 members. In the US of A, there are 100 senators, with each state electing two to the federal senate, whether tiny Rhode Island or huge Texas, rural Montana or urban New York.
Let us abolish the provincial board and the city and municipal councils. In Manila for instance, councilors meet twice a week for their sessions. And on top of their salaries, they get their own share of “pork” from the barrel, plus “allowances” from Pagcor for hosting casinos. Most provincial boards also meet twice a week, and even in those sessions, do they produce significant legislation for the province? Hardly.
Since it would be most difficult politically to abolish the barangays anyway, and since they are the front-liners in attending to the day-to-day public service needs of their constituents, let them constitute the municipal or city council.
Most towns have only a dozen or so barangays. Let them meet twice a week and craft municipal ordinances. In big cities where there are say, 80 barangays like Cebu City, let the 80 barangay chairpersons elect their representatives to the council among themselves. Meanwhile, let us rationalize the number of barangays. Manila has 890 or so barangays, with some having less than 300 registered voters, while Cebu City has a bit less than 800,000 registered voters; Manila has about a million, but it has 890 barangays compared to Cebu’s 80, or Butuan City with 87 barangays for about 250,000 voters. See what I mean?
All the municipal mayors will constitute the provincial board to legislate. Siquijor and Batanes, for instance, have less than 10 municipalities. In bigger provinces like Bohol or Pangasinan with some 40 or more municipalities, let them take turns in the board, at two to three years each within a term of six years.
Let us give every elected official a term of six years, with the president eligible for reelection, along with his party chosen vice president, so too with the governors and mayors.
Good leaders are hard to find, so why limit their service to one term? Twelve years of a good leader would provide policy and program continuity. A recall for bad leaders can be institutionalized, just as impeachment will remove a bad president.
Thus, we will vote for only the following every six years: One presidential tandem (1), two senators (2), one district congressman (1), one gubernatorial team (1) one municipal tandem (1). Six names. We don’t even have to automate, because six names would be so easy to write down as well as to canvass. In highly urbanized cities, voters need write only five names.
Then we separately hold, as mid-term, our barangay elections, with a chairman and six council members. No more SK. Seven names. These will also serve for six years.
We have few barangay and municipal health workers, let alone doctors. We need more teachers. We need more policemen and soldiers. We need more traffic aides, more agricultural technicians. All these appointed public servants need college degrees and/or civil service eligibilities under our laws, even pass professional examinations to practice their craft.
Yet our Constitution allows idiots and brigands who know only how to read and write to be elected.
What a country!