HOUSE Deputy Majority Leader and Mandaluyong City Rep. Neptali “Boyet” Gonzales II on Monday expressed confidence in the second reading approval of Resolution of Both Houses No. 7 (RBH 7) next week, after two weeks of extensive deliberations by the House Committee of the Whole.
“Based on the timeline shared with me, [March] 11, 12, 13 will be the second reading…I guess maa-approve ito on second reading by Wednesday next week,” Gonzales revealed during the regular daily press conference at the House of Representatives.
On Feb. 26, the House Committee of the Whole initiated discussions on RBH 7, aimed at amending specific economic provisions in the 1987 Constitution concerning public utilities, education and advertising.
The proposed amendment seeks to insert the phrase “unless otherwise provided by law.” RBH 7 mirrors the content of RBH 6, currently being deliberated in the Senate.
Over the past two weeks, the committee, comprising all House members, has deliberated on various aspects of economic Charter amendments, gathering insights from legal luminaries, constitutional experts, government officials and economists.
Discussions have centered on reassessing the 60-40 equity rule on foreign ownership, which currently restricts foreigners to owning up to 40 percent of companies in the Philippines. This rule has long been identified as a significant barrier to substantial increases in foreign direct investment and has hindered the country’s economic growth trajectory.
Unlike in the committee level, Gonzales said the second reading will be faster as it will be limited to members interpellation.
“Mas mabilis ang second reading because it will be limited to the interpellation of the members. Unlike in the committee level, kaya tumatagal ‘yan because may direct questions to the resource speakers,” Gonzales, who serves as the Majority Leader of the committee of the whole.
He added: “But when we go on second reading ang tinatanong na lang is the sponsor. And then any questions must be addressed to the sponsor who should answer all the interpelating questions to be done by any of the Members.”
Meanwhile, 1-RIDER Party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez welcomed a Senate resolution proposing rules to amend or revise the 1987 Constitution, filed by Sen. Francis Tolentino, albeit belatedly.
“It is a welcome development po, although we would have hoped that it would have happened earlier, pero nonetheless better late than never,” Gutierrez said in the same press conference.
The Tolentino resolution was prompted by Senator Chiz Escudero’s recent observation regarding the absence of Senate rules on how to adopt or reject proposals to amend the Constitution.
Escudero noted that the Senate lacks specific rules for constitutional amendments, unlike the House, which has well-defined procedures outlined in Sections 143 and 144 of House Rules XXI.
Other House lawmakers have previously voiced concerns about the Senate’s lack of clear guidelines for amending the Constitution, questioning the sincerity of senators in advocating for economic constitutional reforms.
They emphasized the urgency for senators to address this issue promptly, especially considering that the Senate had commenced discussions on the resolution concerning economic Charter amendments ahead of the House.
