Con means to trick, fool, deceive, cheat. Ass is one that is utterly silly.
Ass is also used in a vulgar sense to refer to a part of the body.
Con-Ass is the perfect term for what Gloria Arroyo and Speaker Jose de Venecia are pushing to bring about the change of Constitution that they desperately need for different reasons.
It’s now back to Con-Ass after the failure of Arroyo’s bogus People’s Initiative. Two regional trial courts, one in Capiz and another in General Santos, have issued restraining orders to the Commission on Elections to desist from verifying signatures gathered by the pro-Arroyo Sigaw ng Bayan without an implementing law for the People’s Initiative.
De Venecia dreams that when Congress resumes in July, it will be as a Constituent Assembly. While the Constitution designed the Senate and the House to be separate, De Venecia wants the two chambers to merge for purposes that serves only his and Arroyo’s interests.
If that happens, that’s indeed Con-Ass the proposed revision by the committee headed by Rep. Constantino Jaraula will make Gloria Arroyo so very powerful that, she can choose to stay in power forever.
The Counsels for the Defense of Liberties points out the dangerous provision: “Sec. 4 (1) There shall exist upon the ratification of these amendments, an interim Parliament which shall continue until the members of the regular parliament shall have been elected and shall have qualified. Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives and the incumbent Members of the Cabinet who are heads of executive departments.”
With this insertion, Codal said Arroyo will be granted the power to appoint members of her cabinet to parliament. “This provision packs the ‘parliament’ with presidential allies and is akin to President Ferdinand Marcos appointing sectoral representatives to the Interim Batasang Pambansa during martial law. This also makes many members of the said Parliament, especially members of the House of Representatives, unelected by the people.”
Codal also said that the Section 4 (1) insertion “provides for a ‘no election’ scenario which extends the term of members of the House to 2010 or until a ‘regular parliament shall have been elected’. “
Codal noted that “there is no explanation why the terms of House members are extended while Senators whose terms of office also ends in 2007 will not be members of the ‘parliament’ as provided in Sec. 4 (3). ‘Senators whose term of office ends in 2010 shall be Members of the Parliament until noon of the thirtieth of June 2010’.
Codal also said that with the revision proposed by Jaraula’s committee on Art. VII, Arroyo becomes unimpeachable.
Sec. 1 (2): The incumbent President and Vice-President shall serve until the expiration of their term at noon on the thirtieth day of June 2010 and shall continue to exercise their powers under the 1987 Constitution unless impeached by a vote of two-thirds of all members of the interim parliament.
“Unless initiated by Speaker Jose de Venecia, it is almost impossible to impeach the President considering that the opposition even failed to muster the current 1/3 requirement to impeach the President under the 1987 Constitution,” Codal said.
The only way the President will be impeached, Codal said, is “if Speaker de Venecia will support impeachment proceedings against her and Vice-President Noli de Castro, in which case Speaker de Venecia becomes the Head of Government and State upon their removal as provided in Sec. 1 (2) of the proposed revision which states that :
Sec. 1 (2) … In case of death, permanent disability, resignation or removal from office of both the incumbent President and Vice-President, the interim Prime Minister shall assume all the powers and responsibilities of the Prime Minister under Art. VII as amended.”
Arroyo can continue with her cheating and stealing and the people would not be able to do anything about it.
A con-ass job, indeed.
Ellen,
I just read that con ass Arroyo par excellence soke before a gathering of members of the Legislative Excecutive Development Advisory Council asking them to consider the art of “principled politics”.
The news report quoted Arroyo as saying “I open this meeting with an open mind and a firm belief that principled politics shall pervade our endeavor.”
I almost fell off my chair! This woman, who lies, who cheats, who steals and continues to thwart the rule of law and bamboozles the poulation with her version of the Philippine Constitution speaks of “PRINCIPLED POLITICS”?
How can one so midget or punggok in morals with nary a good bone in her body could even utter the word PRINCIPLED or PRINCIPLE?
OK, I know she can utter any word she wants because she has forked tongue (like when she said ‘I won’t run in the 2004 elections’ or when she lied about God speaking to her, etc.) but just the same, it is gobsmacking in the extreme to hear one who doesn’t have an iota or clue as to the true meaning of the word should brandish it as if she invented it!
Let’s see whether she’ll pass the principles test.
According to http://www.sla.purdue.edu/academic/engl/theory/psychoanalysis/definition states that principle is defined as a fundamental truth or law upon which others are based.
Well, basing it on Purdue’s succint but highly explicit dogma-like definition of principle, it seems Gloria has just failed the PRINCIPLES test! “Fundamental truth or law be damned” Gloria might as well say…
What the agreement to “sit down and talk” on Charter Change means according to Drilon:
Transcript of Interview with Senate President Franklin M. Drilon
May 16, 2006
On the LEDAC meeting
Drilon: Contrary to the media spin that the Senate has softened up, I
think what happened in the LEDAC meeting today is the opposite. In
my view, the President has softened up on the people’s initiative.
The Palace must have realized that the Senate position is after all
correct-that the people’s initiative is patently illegal for lack of
any enabling statute and the difficulty of complying with the
constitutional requirement of 3% signatures per congressional
district, 12 % nationwide and most importantly, that this is not an
amendment but a revision which is not proper in a people’s
initiative. For these reasons, I could see the trend in the LEDAC
meeting that the President is actually more in favor now of a Con-
Ass rather than a people’s initiative. It is quite obvious that if
there is any softening up, it is on the part of the Palace that is
now more inclined to favor the Con-Ass. This is also confirmed by
the information I got two weeks ago from a close adviser of the
President that the President has in fact been inclined to abandon
the people’s initiative train. Now, the question is those national
and local officials who spent public funds for the people’s
initiative must now account for the funds that they have spent.
Ano bang mangyayari dito sa nagamit na pondo para dito sa people’s
initiative. Ganoon ang sitwasyon.
Q: What made you say?
Drilon: The fact is she encouraged the dialogue on the con-ass and
there was no mention whatsoever of the people’s initiative.
Q: Hindi kaya tactic lang iyon?
Drilon: As I said, the people’s initiative was never mentioned, not
even once during the LEDAC.
Q: Open na kayo sa con-ass?
Drilon: The matter is with the committee of Senator Gordon. We do
not want to bypass our committee system. I will support the
decision of the committee insofar as this issue is concerned.
Senator Gordon will lead his committee in a dialogue with Cong.
Jaraula and the House counterparts. This is not unusual. In the
workings of the legislature, it is not unusual that informal
meetings are held between committees on any pending matters in
Congress.
Q: Uunahin daw iyong soft amendments?
Drilon: That was just a suggestion as to how to proceed.
Q: It is not an agreement?
Drilon: There is no agreement whatsoever. All that was agreed was
that a dialogue be opened like any legislative matter that we take
up between both houses of Congress, a dialogue takes place usually
among the chairs of the two committees to facilitate the work.
Q: Ibig sabihin inaabandon na rin ng Senate iyong campaign against
cha-cha?
Drilon: We will abandon it when there is a clear declaration that the
people’s initiative train is finally derailed.
Q: What you actually opposed was the people’s initiative. ?
Drilon: The resolution of the Senate says that the people’s
initiative is patently illegal. Insofar as the con-ass is concerned,
the Senate resolution said we must vote separately.
Q: (inaudible)
Drilon: I will support whatever the recommendation of the Gordon
committee.
Q: How early?
Drilon: I would not know that. It’s too early to say anything. I
don’t even know what will happen in this dialogue between Senator
Gordon and Cong. Jaraula.
Q: Can you say that there will be cha-cha?
Drilon: I think that conclusion is premature. All we that we have
agreed upon is to open a dialogue.
Q: No agreement to prioritize economic revisions and other so called
soft provisions?
Drilon: It is just a suggestion as to how to proceed with the
dialogue.
Q: You just agreed to talk?
Drilon: Agreed to talk. Period.
-o0o-
After the COMELEC acknowledged that indeed there were inconsistencies and anomalies in the signature campaign of the PI, the administration has once again trained its eyes on Con-Ass. The “train”, the administration often boasted about has ground to a halt. I like the senate strategy of baiting the administration into thinking they are open to Con-Ass. The senate could easily sit on it so the administration’s July schedule would not be met. Finally the senate has beaten GMA in her own game.
Joel,
I hope you’re right. Me? Can’t help being suspicious. Why is it that at the first whistle to come to a Malacanang sponsored dialogue, the Senators come running? A deal is being struck somewhere.
I really do want to believe that the Senators just want to use this dialogue to delay things and derail the July target date of Malacanang and De Venecia for a parliamentary form of government.
But experience with our politicians has taught me to suspect their every move. It has turned me into a cynic, sad to say.
Ellen,
Thanks for the transcript.. Good to read an almost verbatim report.
Joel, I’ll probably sound sceptical but given the volte face tradition of the unprincipled politics of this government, Drilon’s interpretation of the Palace or Gloria line at LEDAC might not be Gloria’s at all. Until we hear Gloria’s official reaction, at least to what Drilon said (per Ellen’s transcription of the interview), we can’t relly say who is conning who. Gloria, ever the wily, unprincipled maniac of a politician that she is might come up with another carrot or singkamas to fool the Senate.
Anyway, if the Senate meets this midget head on, there is a strong chance, JdV’s parliament will be a goner, in the end that’s gonna be good news because it will signal that the Gloria-deVenecia tandem is destructible!
Now, let’s wait and see how Gordon will play his part…
Most of the media are falling prey and taking the bait of CON-ASS or CHACHA, which is essentially squid tricks to cloud the issue and steer away the focus of graft and corruption that the malacanang squatter )MS) started even before she warmed her seat in the palace of the people by approving the IMPSA deal that Erap won’t touch with a ten foot pole. Whatever be the merits of CHACHA or CON-ASS, the criying need of the moment is to address the anomalies rolled on by MS like bowling balls – one after the other, i.e, money laundering, disappearing DPHW funds and CALAMITY funds and MARCOS funds and FERTILIZER funds, and most urgently the mockery of law and order which digs deep into the moral fabric and weal of the people. These anomalies must be addressed NOW. There is plenty of time for CON-ASS later.
It is evident that the MS is having success at diverting the issue with the facade of ChaCha and CON-ASS. Let not the media put their guard down nor underestimate the wiles of the MS. She is a wily political animal and all her moves are premeditated. One needs no crystal ball to see that beneath the placid disposition of pinoys lie the simmering stirrings of violent upheaval. Pinoys can be fed up too.
Anna, Drilon’s office releases to members of media both transcript and press releases. One time, one lazy reporter asked the Senate media office to skip the transcript and just send the press release. We all raised a howl. We said we need the transcript so we would know the actual quotes and in what context he said it. So the transcript stayed.
eto na naman trial and error
last year ang walang kwentang Consulatative commission na kunwaring nagkonsulta sa taong bayan
ang piankawalan ng admin na ito…
nang di tumalab eto people’s initiative
tapos pinaikot na nama tayo sa con ass
WAla Yan wala pa nnagang budget eh…
sabagay isa pang aksaya sa oras tong budget nato
kung may three year budgeting tayo
mas makatitipid kaya?
Pati tuloy ako umikot na..nahilo na ksi ako sa paikot ng kinauukulan.
Their strategy is try and try again. It’s up to the people not to allow them to succeed.
The Palace Initiative chacha express train was stopped on its track by many opposition. Rightly so because it is not only illegal, it is immoral. Now the proponents are singing a new tune – back to con-ass. One ex-concom member described the Adcom as “additional compensation” to illustrate his own disgust with his former colleagues’ vested interest. Really sucks.
17 May 2006
In order for the people to believe that our politicans are true to their word, why dont we ask all of them to resign first and elect our members of the parliament. Of course it could only be done if the president and the vice president resigns. But as long as these people, with their own vested interest, nothing will happen. Why??? because they will protect their interest, why do you think msot them wants to change the system that we have right now??? for their own protection.
Before we could really have a system change, all them forming the con-ASS, they should not qualify to run as member of the parliament. They are telling us, the people to make the supreme sacrifice, but do they???.
jinx
Anna and Phil, I caught Sen. Pangilinan on ANC this morning. He clearly pointed out that though they are open to talks regarding Con-Ass, this does not mean they are agreeable to it. I think this is the senate’s way to answer or counter the bad publicity the administration and lowerhouse has been hurling at them. He also pointed out the legal questions PI and Con-Ass has to hurdle. Let’s all hope something positive will come out of it.
meron pa bang pag asang makahulagpos ang pilipinas sa kuko ni gloria? … hindi ako naniniwalang uunlad ang pilipinas sa pangunguna niya … kung nagawa niyang huthutan ang kaban ng bayan sa panahon ng paghihirap, e di lalo na kapag ang bayan ay umunlad … ano ba ang dapat mangyari para mawala siya?
E-mail from Mario Gonzales:
Hi Ellen,
Who is the “CON” and who is the “ASS”
testing…
E-mail from Rene Azurin:
Folks:
Given the way ‘cha-cha’ is being railroaded, I set up a website to start
a ‘No to Parliament’ movement. The website address is:
http://www.notoparliament.net
I’d like to invite all of you to log on to the site and get in your
comments on the material there. You can also register for the movement
if you want.
If you agree with this ‘contra’ view, please disseminate the above link
to all your friends. Let’s spread the word and fight this thing.
Thanks and cheers,
Rene
Another e-mail from Rene Azurin:
Folks:
In her Star column today (May 20), Carmen Pedrosa adds to the deceptions that pro-Parliament advocates are fostering on the Filipino people. I sent the rejoinder below to the Star editors but — since this is not likely to be published — I am sending it also to you to disseminate as you see fit.
Thanks and best regards,
Rene
——————————————————————————————————
Dear Editor:
Another in a string of deceptions that pro-Parliament advocates are fostering on the Filipino people is added by Carmen Pedrosa in her column today.
She states that their People’s Initiative to shift to a unicameral parliament will allow other charter changes – like economic liberalization – to proceed since these are “not possible under the mode of a people’s initiative”. She is either deliberately lying or she still hasn’t a clue as to what is in our Constitution.
In fact, unlike changing the form of government which requires a wholesale replacement of Articles VI (32 sections) and VII (23 sections) of the Constitution, liberalizing the economy involves only striking out short phrases in the two sections in Article XII and the one section in Article XVI which contain the foreign ownership restrictions for certain industry sectors. The former case is clearly a revision, which is not allowed under a people’s initiative; the latter case is a simple amendment, which is permissible under a people’s initiative. In any event, it is obvious that opening up the economy to foreign investment does not require that we shift first to a parliamentary system.
Her repeated claim that they – the pro-Parliament advocates – represent the “yagit” against the contra-Parliament movement who she says represent the “elite” is another deception. In fact, those (like her) who advocate the shift to a parliamentary system are actually proposing that our politicos (who typically belong to the elite or represent elite interests) be given even greater power, and that the little power we ordinary citizens still have be further diminished.
Not only will we no longer be able to vote for our leader – sila sila na lang sa Parliament ang pipili ng ating pinuno – but, because of the fusion of executive and legislative powers in the parliamentary system, we will also be less able to check or control the powers that politicos now wield. Consider this: if the P2.8 billion agricultural fund anomaly was possible in a presidential system which has strong checks and balances, what more could be possible in a parliamentary system which has fewer (and weaker) checks? Those who advocate this system (parliamentary) are clearly the ones who represent the political and economic elite in our society.
The pro-Parliament cha cha advocates are con artists who are laying the groundwork for a grand deception of the Filipino people. It’s just too bad that most major news media have already been taken in by this con.
René B. Azurin
(ex-ConCom member)
http://www.notoparliament.net