THE VISION OF THE NEW CONSTITUTION OF THE
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES*

Mr. Vice-President, Hon. Ambrosio Padilla, My beloved
Colleagues in the Constitutional Commission, Your
Excellencies of the Diplomatic Corps, The Acting Chief
Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court,
Members of the Cabinet and other Dignitaries of Gov-
ernment, My Countrymen:

On June 2nd of this year, 48 men and women gathered in this hall for the inaugural session of the Constitutional Commission of 1986, and took their solemn oath to write a new Charter for the Republic of the Philippines which in the words of President Corazon C. Aquino will be "truly reflective of the aspirations and ideals of the Filipino people."

Today, October 15, the closing session of the Constitutional Commission is taking place in this same hall where its members have labored from morning till evening for no less than 111 working days. The 48 was reduced by one, several became sick and were hospitalized as the work progressed, and one is too sick to be present at these closing ceremonies.

Every day we opened our plenary sessions with a Prayer led by a Commissioner called in alphabetical order, and in every prayer was reflected our full surrender to a Supreme Being, to God Almighty, seeking Divine guidance, wisdom, physical and spiritual strength to enable the Commission to accomplish its sacred mission of drafting a new fundamental law that will rule the destiny and life of the Filipino nation.

My Colleagues, today we are called upon to present to the Filipino people and to the Community of Nations the historic document which our hearts and minds have brought into existence with much love and dedication. Today we are called upon to make an accounting of every single word, phrase, and sentence, of every punctuation mark, of every paragraph, section and Article written, and most importantly, of every thought, idea, and principle enunciated in that document. Our people await their new Charter with great expectations clouded however with no little amount of misgivings as to what may have been produced.

My Colleagues, as your President, it becomes my task and duty today to submit and offer to the Filipino people the Constitution you have written and drafted, and I assure you it will be a most happy task. The document admittedly is a lengthy one. It consists of 18 Articles, 321 long sections, and numerous sub-sections.

With humility intertwined with profound pride, I can state that the new Constitution is a worthy legacy to the Filipino people of today, tomorrow and posterity.

The fires of patriotism which erupted in the Philippine Revolution of 1898 and produced the Magna Carta of Malolos, the intense desire and clamor for independence from foreign rule which inspired the eminent nationalists who framed the 1935 Constitution for the Philippine Commonwealth and which eventually became the Constitution of the Philippine Republic, the bitter experiences of the nation under a Constitution imposed upon the people under the aegis of martial rule — all these forces played a part in the framing of the new Charter in this year of Our Lord 1986.

*Speech delivered by President Cecilia Muñoz Palma during the Closing Ceremonies of the Constitutional Commission on October 15, 1986 at the Batasan Building.

A beautiful irony which cannot be overlooked is the fact that this new Constitution was discussed, debated and finally written within the walls of this hall which saw the emergence of what was called by its author a "constitutional authoritarianism" but which in effect was a dictatorship. pure and simple. This hall was the seat of a combined executive and legislative power skillfully placed in the hands of one man for more than a decade. However, the miracle of prayer and of a people's faith and determined struggle to break the shackles of dictatorship toppled down the structure of despotism and converted this hall into hallowed grounds where the seeds of a newly-found freedom have been sown and have borne fruit.

My Countrymen, we open the new Charter with a Preamble which is the beacon light that shines and brightens the path in building a new structure of government for our people. In that Preamble is expounded in positive terms our goals and aspirations. Thus, imploring the aid of Almighty God, we shall establish a just and humane society, a social order that upholds the dignity of man. For as a Christian nation, we adhere to the principle that "the dignity of man and the common good of society demand that society must be based on justice." We uphold our independence and a democratic way of life, and abhoring despotism and tyranny, we bind ourselves to live under the Rule of Law where no man is above the law, and where truth, justice, freedom, equality, love and peace will prevail.

For the first time in the history of constitution-making in this country, the word "love" is enshrined in the fundamental law. This is most significant at this period in our national life when the nation is bleeding under the forces of hatred and violence. Love which begets understanding is necessary if reconciliation is to be achieved among the warring factions and conflicting ideologies now gripping the country. Love is imperative if peace is to be restored in our native land, for without love there can be no peace.

We have established a republican democratic form of government where sovereignty resides in the people and civilian supremacy over the military is upheld.

For the first time, the Charter contains an all-embracing expanded Bill of Rights which constitutes the cornerstone of the structure of government. Traditional rights and freedoms which are hallmarks of our democratic way of life are reaffirmed. The rights of life, liberty and property, due process, equal protection of the laws, freedom of religion, speech, the press, and peaceful assembly among others are reasserted and guaranteed. The Marcos provision that search warrants or warrants of arrest may be issued not only by a judge but by any responsible officer authorized by law is discarded. Never again will the Filipino people be victims of the much-condemned presidential detention action (PDA) or presidential commitment orders (PCOS) which desecrate the rights to life and liberty, for under the new provision a search warrant or warrant of arrest may be issued only by a judge. Mention must be made of some new features in the Bill of Rights, such as: the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus can be suspended only in cases of invasion or rebellion, and the right to bail is not impaired during such suspension thereby discarding jurisprudence laid down by the Supreme Court under the Marcos dispensation that the suspension of the privilege of the writ carried with it the suspension of the right to bail. The death penalty is abolished, and physical psychological or degrading punishment against prisoners or detainees, substandard and subhuman conditions in penitentiaries are condemned.

For the first time, the Constitution provides for the creation of a Commission on Human Rights entrusted with the grave responsibility of investigating violations.of civil and political rights by any party or groups and recommending remedies therefor.

From the Bill of Rights we proceed to the structure of government established in the new Charter.

We have established the presidential system of government with three branches the legislative, executive, and judicial each separate and independent of each other, but affording an effective check and balance of one over the other.

All legislative power is returned and exclusively vested in a bicameral legislature where the members are elected by the people for a definite term, subject to limitations for reelection, disqualification to hold any other office or employment in the government including government-owned or controlled corporations, and among others, they may not even appear as counsel before any court of justice.

For the first time in our Constitution, twenty percent of members in the lower House are to be elected through a party list system, and for three consecutive terms after the ratification of the Constitution, 25 of the seats shall be allocated to sectoral representatives from labor, peasant, urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, women, youth and other sectors as may be provided by law. This innovation is a product of the signs of the times where there is an intense clamor for expanding the horizons of participatory democracy among the people.

The executive power is vested in the President of the Philippines elected by the people for a sixyear term with no reelection for the duration of his/her life. While traditional powers inherent in the office of the President are granted, nonetheless for the first time there are specific provisions which curtail the extent of such powers. Most significant is the power of the Chief Executive to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or proclaim martial law.

The flagrant abuse of that power of the commander-in-chief by Mr. Marcos caused the imposition of martial law for more than eight years and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus even after the lifting of martial rule in 1981. The new Constitution now provides that those powers can be exercised only in two cases, invasion or rebellion when public safety demands it, only for a period not exceeding sixty days, and reserving to Congress the power to revoke such suspension or proclamation of martial law which Congressional action may not be revoked by the President. More importantly, the action of the President is made subject to judicial review, thereby again discarding jurisprudence which rendered the executive action a political question and beyond the jurisdiction of the courts to adjudicate.

For the first time, there is a provision that the state of martial law does not suspend the operation of the Constitution nor abolish civil courts or legislative assemblies, or vest jurisdiction to military tribunals over civilians, or suspend the privilege of the writ. Please forgive me if at this point I state that this constitutional provision vindicates the dissenting opinions I have written during my tenure in the Supreme Court in the martial law cases.

With these safeguards, it is hoped that never again will the Filipino people undergo the harrowing experiences of a dictatorship.

Of the three branches of government, it is said that the weakest is the Judiciary. The new Charter clothes the judicial branch of government with the mantle of independence in order that it may attain. once more its lost prestige and regain the faith of the Filipino people. The provisions on the Judiciary aim to make the Courts of justice the true and faithful "guardian of the Constitution, protector of the people's rights and freedoms, and repository of the nation's guarantees against tyranny, despotism, and dictatorship."

For the first time and breaking all traditions in the history of the Judiciary in our country, judicial power is now expressly defined in the Constitution so as to include the duty of the courts of justice to settle actual controversies involving rights which are legally demandable and enforceable and

to determine whether or not there has been a grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction. What does this mean? Former Chief Justice Roberto Concepcion in his dissenting opinion in Javellana vs. Executive Secretary has the answer: "When the grant of power is qualified, conditional or subject to limitations, the issue whether or not such conditions have been met is justiciable or non-political and the courts have a duty rather than the power to determine whether another branch of government has kept within constitutional limits." With this broad definition of judicial power therefore our highest Tribunal can no longer evade adjudicating on the validity of executive or legislative action by claiming that the issue is a political question. Aside from the above, for the first time, the judiciary is placed beyond the reach of politics and politicians through the creation of a Judicial and Bar Council and security of tenure of judges is assured with a specific prohibition that the legislature may not reorganize the courts when it shall undermine the security of tenure of the judges. Administrative supervision of the Courts is placed in the hands of the Supreme Court.

Having presented to you the organic parts of the government structure, let us look now into the source of the bloodstream that gives life and substance to the provisions of the new Charter.

The Constitution has an Article on Declaration of Principles and State Policies and an Article on General Provisions.

My Colleagues, the Article on Social Justice which we have framed is the heart of the new Constitution.

When Pope John Paul II came to the Philippines and visited the slums of Tondo, he indicated the obligations of justice that confront society and all who have power whether economic, cultural or political. He called attention to the intolerable situations that perpetuate the poverty and misery of the many who are constantly hungry and deprived of their rightful chances to grow and develop their human potential, who lack decent housing and sufficient clothing, who suffer illness for want of employment and protection against poverty and disease.

The Article on Social Justice answers these challenges and addresses itself to specified areas of concern: labor, agrarian and urban land reform, health, working women, indigenous cultural communities, and people's organizations. The agrarian reform program is founded on the right of farmers and farmworkers who are landless to own directly or collectively the lands they till or to receive a just share of the fruits of the land. This provision answers Pope John Paul II when he said that "the land is a gift from God that he makes to all human beings and it is not to be used in such a way that its benefits are to the advantage of only a few while the vast majority are excluded from sharing in the benefits of the land and are condemned to a state of want, poverty and borderline existence."

The Article on the National Economy and Patrimony sets out our goal that the State shall develop a self-reliant and independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos. There lies the reason for our statement that this Constitution is not only pro-poor and pro-people, but also pro-Filipino, notwithstanding claims to the contrary by some. For the first time, the use and enjoyment of the nation's marine wealth is reserved exclusively for Filipinos, agricultural lands of the public domain may be alienated only to Filipino citizens; executive and managing officers of public utilities must be citizens of the Philippines; the practice of all professions shall be limited to citizens of the Philippines; while the Filipino First policy has been constitutionalized. These provisions to my mind demonstrate a significant step towards an effective control of business and the profession by Filipinos while the maligned 60-40 equity ratio found in the Article does not in itself preclude the government from increasing the Filipino equity even to 100% should conditions and the economic situation in the country in the near future justify such an economic policy. After all, the ultimate decision lies in the hands of the Filipino people acting through their elected national leaders in government.