THE House of Representatives under the leadership of Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez on Tuesday approved House Bill (HB) 7352 or the proposed “Constitutional Convention Act” on Second Reading.
The measure covers the implementation of Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6 to propose amendments to, or revisions of, the 1987 Philippine Constitution.
Key provisions of HB 7352 include: 1) the composition of Constitutional Convention of 251 elected delegates and appointed sectoral representatives, equal to 20 percent of the total elected delegates; 2) the qualifications of the elected and appointed delegates, as well as the disqualification of those convicted by final judgment of a crime involving moral turpitude; 3) the election of delegates on the last Monday of October 2023, simultaneous with the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections; 4) acts prohibited in addition to those acts already prohibited in the Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines; and 5) emoluments for the delegates amounting to P10,000 for every day of actual attendance and entitlement to necessary travel and lodging expenses.
HB 7325 requires that the delegates of the Constitutional Convention must be of recognized probity, independence, nationalism, and patriotism.
Under the bill, the Commission on Elections (ComelecOMELEC) would be mandated to issue the rules and regulations that shall govern the election of delegates to the Convention.
HB 7325 was approved the day after RBH 6 was passed on Third and Final Reading. The bill was introduced by Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe, Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, AKO BICOL Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, and Marikina City Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo, among others.
Deputy Speakers Isidro Ungab and Kristine Singson-Meehan presided over the plenary session.
