SENATE President Francis “Chiz” Escudero has called for a comprehensive review of the Party-List System Act (Republic Act 7491) following the release of a study indicating that over half of the party-list organizations running in the 2025 elections do not represent marginalized sectors.
Escudero stated that the original intent of the law appears to have been undermined, citing both the law itself and numerous court decisions.
He proposed a thorough review that begins with identifying the sectors currently needing representation in Congress. This list, he emphasized, should be exhaustive and exclusive. Only after defining these sectors, he suggested, can a suitable election process be determined.
The Senate President pointed to the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) law as an example of a successful approach to differentiating between sectoral and party representatives.
His comments follow a report by election watchdog Kontra Daya, which found that 55.13% (85 out of 156) of party-list groups vying for House seats do not represent the poor or underrepresented.
