Joint Declaration for Immediate Constitutional Reforms
October 20, 2005
Manila Hotel
The Majority Coalition of the House of Representatives and all the associations comprising the nationwide network of local officials under the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) have agreed to launch a strategic coalition and partnership to bring about urgent political and economic reforms and a stable and vibrant representative democracy through constitutional reforms.
To this end we have agreed, at this historic meeting today of our leaders and representatives, to declare as follows:
1. We believe that the prolonged crisis and its consequences and collateral effects pose a very serious threat to the integrity of the Philippine State and the safety of the Filipino people – and the publicly announced goal by authoritarians of the extreme Left and Right to bring down the duly-constituted Government and establish a ruling junta in its place have created a clear and present danger to the Philippine State.
2. We believe that this political crisis-and its reckless escalation into various plots by extremist forces to topple the President-is damaging the economy grievously by scaring foreign and local investments, damaging overall business confidence, and slowing economic growth to well below the average forecast for East Asian economies for 2005.
3. We believe this crisis and other structural defects of our presidential system can be met effectively through Charter reform, which has been the overwhelming sentiment of our local constituencies, civil society groups, business and industry leaders, professional associations and student organizations in our various forums and consultation meetings.
4. We believe in the urgent need to immediately shift the country to a parliamentary government and a unicameral legislature. The bicameral presidential system whose rising cost of elections, short election cycles, and built-in conflicts and gridlock in the separation of powers and check-and-balance between the Executive and the Legislative branches has hindered the country’s development and spawned poverty, homelessness, social inequality, inadequate social services and infrastructure development, two major rebellions fanned by social injustice and underdevelopment, heavy government indebtedness, and weak institutions that lead to ineffective governance.
5. We support the clamor for a shift from a unitary to a Federal System under a formula and a transition period acceptable to the local government units (LGUs). The transition period shall consider measures to save funds of the government for the economic development of the country.
6. We believe in greater, meaningful and genuine local autonomy to spur countryside development that can become the engine to propel national progress. We hold further that strengthening the existing local government structures is the key to ensuring fast and effect
ive delivery of basic services.
7. We believe the parliamentary system makes for effective governance by fusing executive and legislative powers in the national parliament where the majority coalition or party elects the Prime Minister who will lead the government and its Cabinet. The parliamentary system has been mainly responsible for the rise of the parliamentary powers of Europe, and of Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and most recently India, to cite a few models in Asia, and in the south, Australia and New Zealand. The two pure presidential systems in Southeast Asia – the Philippines and Indonesia – are not by coincidence constantly bedeviled by political and economic crises.
8. We appreciate President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s assigning this shift to a parliamentary government and a Federal System acceptable to LGUs, the highest political priority and moral urgency- because it presents the single most fundamental change to strengthen our democracy and bring the Filipino people on the path to sustained economic development.
9. We urge Congress to determine immediately the most expeditious and least expensive mode of introducing specific amendments to the 1987 Constitution and submit these amendments to a national plebiscite, so that the country could begin the long march back into economic competitiveness with the vision of achieving comparable prosperity with our neighbors by 2015.
10. We believe that constitutional reform will lead to a strong party system by making political parties effective agencies of representative and responsive government, and by installing the primacy of a coherent program of government for electing the highest leaders of the nation. We also believe in putting in place equally important reforms, namely to raise the Commission on Elections beyond the reach of partisan politics, authorize public financing of qualified political parties, prohibit the perpetuation of political dynasties, and outlaw turncoatism to strengthen the strong political party system.
11. We declare that the term of the incumbent President must be respected.
12. We propose that the incumbent members of the Senate be named automatic members of the proposed new parliament as an option in the transition phase of the shift from presidential to parliamentary government.
13. We believe that the term limits for local officials and members of the Legislature or national parliament should be lifted, and the three-year term be changed to five (5) years, in keeping with the five year tenure of most parliamentary governments, to ensure that locally-initiated development programs are fully sustained. We believe that holding elections once every five years under this proposal will undo the cycle of costly elections that have become among the root causes of corruption.
14. We support the constitutional provision ordaining that LGUs shall have a just share, as determined by law, in all national taxes and customs duties which shall be automatically released to them without further need of appropriation by the Parliament. This way, local autonomy can be enhanced. 
15. We agree to maintain the political subdivisions such as the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, the provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays in the new system of government.
16. We support constitutional economic reforms that would enhance the national interest and accelerate the progress of the country.
17. We commit ourselves to continue to work together, unremittingly, to pursue Charter reforms and to complete the whole process including ratification in a national plebiscite within the soonest possible time; and
18. This Joint Declaration shall take effect immediately.
Done in Manila on 20 October 2005, and signed jointly by the leaders of the parties in the coalition.
ive delivery of basic services.
7. We believe the parliamentary system makes for effective governance by fusing executive and legislative powers in the national parliament where the majority coalition or party elects the Prime Minister who will lead the government and its Cabinet. The parliamentary system has been mainly responsible for the rise of the parliamentary powers of Europe, and of Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and most recently India, to cite a few models in Asia, and in the south, Australia and New Zealand. The two pure presidential systems in Southeast Asia – the Philippines and Indonesia – are not by coincidence constantly bedeviled by political and economic crises.
8. We appreciate President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s assigning this shift to a parliamentary government and a Federal System acceptable to LGUs, the highest political priority and moral urgency- because it presents the single most fundamental change to strengthen our democracy and bring the Filipino people on the path to sustained economic development.
9. We urge Congress to determine immediately the most expeditious and least expensive mode of introducing specific amendments to the 1987 Constitution and submit these amendments to a national plebiscite, so that the country could begin the long march back into economic competitiveness with the vision of achieving comparable prosperity with our neighbors by 2015.
10. We believe that constitutional reform will lead to a strong party system by making political parties effective agencies of representative and responsive government, and by installing the primacy of a coherent program of government for electing the highest leaders of the nation. We also believe in putting in place equally important reforms, namely to raise the Commission on Elections beyond the reach of partisan politics, authorize public financing of qualified political parties, prohibit the perpetuation of political dynasties, and outlaw turncoatism to strengthen the strong political party system.
11. We declare that the term of the incumbent President must be respected.
12. We propose that the incumbent members of the Senate be named automatic members of the proposed new parliament as an option in the transition phase of the shift from presidential to parliamentary government.
13. We believe that the term limits for local officials and members of the Legislature or national parliament should be lifted, and the three-year term be changed to five (5) years, in keeping with the five year tenure of most parliamentary governments, to ensure that locally-initiated development programs are fully sustained. We believe that holding elections once every five years under this proposal will undo the cycle of costly elections that have become among the root causes of corruption.
14. We support the constitutional provision ordaining that LGUs shall have a just share, as determined by law, in all national taxes and customs duties which shall be automatically released to them without further need of appropriation by the Parliament. This way, local autonomy can be enhanced. 
15. We agree to maintain the political subdivisions such as the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, the provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays in the new system of government.
16. We support constitutional economic reforms that would enhance the national interest and accelerate the progress of the country.
17. We commit ourselves to continue to work together, unremittingly, to pursue Charter reforms and to complete the whole process including ratification in a national plebiscite within the soonest possible time; and
18. This Joint Declaration shall take effect immediately.
Done in Manila on 20 October 2005, and signed jointly by the leaders of the parties in the coalition.
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