“This Senate of the people will not allow itself to be silenced.”

Naglabas ng pahayag ang Senado hinggil sa mariin nitong pagtutol sa People’s Initiative (PI) para sa Charter Change (Cha-cha) na naglalayong amyendahan ang 1987 Konstitusyon.

“We respect and recognize the people as our sovereign, with the right to call for Constitutional amendments. We must, however, guard against any sinister and underhanded attempt to change the Constitution by exploiting our democratic process under the guise of a people’s initiative,” pahayag ng Senado sa isang manifesto na inilabas nitong Martes, Enero 23.

“This so-called ‘people’s’ initiative (PI) proposes only one change: in acting as a constituent assembly, the Senate and the House shall vote jointly.”

Empleyadong lasing, patay matapos sapakin ng ginising na katrabaho

“While it seems simple, the goal is apparent – to make it easier to revise the Constitution by eliminating the Senate from the equation, it is an obvious prelude to further amendments, revisions, or even an overhaul of our entire Constitution,” giit pa nito.

Ayon pa sa pahayag, kapag nagpatuloy ang PI, magagawa raw umano ang pagbabago ng Konstitusyon meron man o walang “approval” ng Senado.

“If this PI prospers, further changes to the Constitution can be done with or without the Senate’s approval, or worse, even absent all the Senators. Should Congress vote jointly in a constituent assembly, the Senate and its 24 members cannot cast any meaningful vote against the 316 members of the House of Representatives,” saad ng Senado.

"This singular and seemingly innocuous change in the Constitution will open the floodgates to a wave of amendments and revision that will erode the nation as we know it. To allow joint voting will destroy the delicate balance on which our hard-won democracy rests. It will change, the Senate is left powerless to stop even the most radical proposals:

• We cannot protect our lands from sovereign ownership;
• We cannot stop the removal of term limits or a no election scenario in 2025, or worse, in 2028

"It is ridiculous that the Senate, a co-equal chamber of the House, which is needed to pass ever local bills, will have a dispensable and diluted role in Charter Change - the most monumental act of policymaking concerning the highest law in the land," dagdag pa nito.

Binanggit din sa pahayag na sa kasaysayan daw ng Pilipinas, ang Senado ang laging isa sa mga unang target ng mga taong nais parupukin ang demokrasya ng bansa.

"Today, the Senate once again stands as a bastion of democracy, as it rejects this brazen attempt to violate the Constitution, the country, and our people," anang Senado.

"This Senare of the people will not allow itself to be silenced," pagbibigay-diin pa nito.

Nakalagda sa naturang ang lahat ng 24 na mga senador sa bansa.

Matatandaang iginiit ni Senador Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa nitong Lunes, Enero 22, na may nakapagsabi daw sa kaniya mula sa Kamara na si House Speaker Martin Romualdez umano ang nasa likod ng PI.