Federalism, autonomy and peace agreements
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he new administration draw its political
campaign espousing federalism as an alternative to republican, unitary and presidential
system of government. Critics of the current form of government contended that restructuring
the bureaucracy is necessary alleging that the present system is antiquated and
the distribution of wealth is disproportionately favorable only to Manila.
Other Mindanaoan legislators backed the campaign
eyeing federalism as suitable for multicultural, diverse peoples and as remedy
to protracted insurgency. This brings serious question whether or not
federalism is indeed the correct cure to the problems besetting this country?
The latter question presuppose a major inquiry—what really is the problem of
the Philippines? Is federalism, as an alternative, compatible to the Bangsamoro
quest for right to self-determination in accordance to the Comprehensive Agreement
of the Bangsamoro? Are the regional constituents politically mature enough amid
concerns on patronage and lawlessness at the margins?
Motivations
This paper is a personal quest and curiosity on the
advocacy about federalism as an alternative system of Philippine governance;
perceived by advocates as panacea to social ills; and as a structural medium to
deliver more access and control on wealth and resource management in regional
units.
Further, being a peace advocate working with
others for a peaceful Mindanao, I deem it essential to wield serious
understanding on the implications of establishing a federal system of
government to the Bangsamoro people who have concluded the Comprehensive
Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) with the Philippine government on March 27,
2014.
This motivation, being personal, means this paper is not for public consumption
and should not in any way be used as reference in a discourse unless with my informed
consent. This may read selfish but that’s just it. I’m writing for my personal
intentions.
Federalism: notes
Federalism is “an autonomous conceptual nucleus
which includes an interpretative criterion of social-historical knowledge and a
guiding criterion for political action.” Its etymology is foedus or foederis
which means union and collaboration to attain common goals by autonomous or
independent subjects and individuals.[1]
It’s a principle of state organization.[2]
Like any system of governance, federalism is
also a process; a taxonomy of political management within the continuum of transforming
society. It’s an “institutional arrangements where public authority is divided
between states government and the central government; sovereignty is shared and
powers divided between two or more levels of government each of which enjoys
direct relations with the people.”[3]
With varying political, philosophical, sociological and legal ideation on federalism,
it’s quite difficult to come up with a comprehensive definition on federalism. The fundamentals however are recognition of
the principles of sense of community (as people), autonomy, complementation of
authorities in the execution of common authorities, federalization as a form of
association, and subsidiarity.[4]
Globally, there are nearly thirty nations
adhering to federal form of government and all are struggling to improve
governance, increase revenue generation to attain economic stability, fraught
on security management, wanting better diplomatic relations and regularly challenged
too in the delivery of social services --whether these nations are in the first or
in the third world strata.
For some, federalism, as a medium of decentralizing
powers, is a remedy to democratic deficit where marginalized communities
account they’re intentionally sidelined in decision-makings and that they lack powers
and control to participate in crucial consensus-building on major issues
affecting their very lives. Thus, it’s pretty understandable that despite interlocking
policies upholding people’s participation and inclusiveness in crafting peace
and development agenda in a republican state, majority of grassroots constituents
still cannot exactly feel the effects and meaning of growth in domestic
products.
While federalism devolves powers on revenues,
resource management, and governance, the entire bureaucracy however still
heavily rely on regional units’ interdependence, the principles of
intergovernmental relations, cooperation, and resource complementation because federalism itself requires system integration to make a whole functional state.
Observably, advocates of unitary government find
an ally on the thought that if the “ultimate object of federalist movement is
to unite all different political and social forces to create fundamental
federal institutions” then theoretically there is not much departure from the
principles of intergovernmental relations and the powers vested to the local
units under the current Local Government Code of 1991.
Apparently this year, recent advocacy reviving
federalism is endorsed by few Mindanaoan bureaucrats and adopted as a political
campaign by presidential –elect Rody Duterte. This advocacy however didn’t take
its roots from constituents at the margins who purportedly
suffer severe alienation from developments. It’s likewise never been a
barangay-based advocacy nor a product of community-based consultations or
grassroots’ recommendations as a consequence of social need assessments. Ergo,
the advocacy on federalism in this country emanated from few bureaucrats wanting demonopolization of central power and devolution of decision-makings.
At whose interests? It’s a bone for contentions.
Federalism advocacy &
hyphenation of
right to
self-determination
As a child, I first
heard of federalism from a Davao-based radio commentator Ruben Canoy in his program. I later read on reports the advocacy of a non-government network
in Mindanao based in Davao too. How widely discussed this advocacy depends on
the number of constituents reached by them.
From the academe, Professor Jose Abueva of the
University of the Philippines viewed a structural change in a form of a federal
state as essential for efficient delivery of services while former Aquilino
Pimental Jr.[5],
father of Local Government Code of 1991, believed that transforming the country
into a federal state will end the protracted rebellion of the country.
In 1991, the passage of the Local Government
Code supposedly accords all political units the right to benefit and enjoy
genuine and meaningful local autonomy. The code states, “territorial and political subdivisions of the State shall enjoy genuine
and meaningful local autonomy to enable them to attain their fullest
development as self-reliant communities and make them more effective partners
in the attainment of national goals.”[6]
This affords all political subdivisions to
localize or legislate local policies, develop economic opportunities and raise
revenues essential for their socio-economic well-being based on the operative
principles of decentralization, except for those matters within the exclusive
powers of the national government. At a hindsight, the issue is how this policy
was maximized by towns, especially those in the lowest class where economic
opportunity is lesser than highly urbanized and modernized regions and has been
hindered to influence higher offices or are held under political patronage and
dynasty?How was the policy exercised to bring socio-political equilibrium between
the central government and the local units?
Apparently, the Code seems not enough because advocacy on federalism continued, taking further justifications on the multicultural,
diverse, and multi-ethnic nature of the Philippine constituents. The growing
understanding on the intrinsic diversity of cultural practices and beliefs of
Philippine constituents reinvigorated the discourse among leaders to
respond to an ever increasing assertion of the indigenous peoples and Bangsamoro
communities' right to self-determination.
Proponents argued that Philippines can be
federated by four regions: Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, and the Bangsamoro region.
Others proposed that the country can be subdivided into twelve regions under a
federal bicameral presidential form of government based on the Joint Resolution
No. 10 proposed by Pimentel[7]
and/or that version proposed by Rep. Monico Puentevella.[8]
Advocates deal the matter in diverse modes
including charter change. However, the political context at that juncture was
prevaricated by constituents’ speculation that then ruling administration
intended to increase the terms of office of elected officials. Others likewise
forecasted potential abuse in the amendment process as some business sectors want
to remove protective economic provisions to vest 100% ownership and control to
foreign companies operating within the country e.g. mining and other industry.
In 2015, last year, when policy advocacy of the
Bangsamoro community took central attention on Bangsamoro Basic Bill which espoused a parliamentary form of regional government,
advocates of federalism otherwise thought it better to prioritize restructuring the
national government instead.
To reckon, the bill wasn’t passed in the 16th
Congress to the disappointment of both GPH and MILF who are pro-actively
engaged in implementing the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB).
Such disappointment was shared by civil society too which strongly lobbied for
its legislation to reform the Autonomous Region on Muslim Mindanao, put an end to war/violence, and to give truant meaning on GPH-MILF peace accord. However, make
no mistake-- that disappointment wasn’t an expression of giving up the bill in
the legislative bin.
Surprisingly, even before the 17th
Congress are able to formally take their seats on June 30, a representative eagerly
and prematurely expressed to national media that instead of refiling BBL,
federalism will be advocated as a priority legislative agenda under Duterte
administration. This generated various reactions from the Bangsamoro front
because at the outset, it essentially and summarily renege the implementation
of CAB.
Unlike the advocacy on federalism which emanates
from few lawmakers with their co-advocates, the BBL is a product of 17 years of
peace negotiations between the government and the MILF. Its drafting passed through
massive consultations, hosted by both government and civil society, within and
outside (neighboring towns) the core Bangsamoro territory. Even in its
legislative refinement (when HB 4994 becomes HB 5811), stakeholders were
consulted on what best provisions apply on them based on their respective context
(e.g. in the case of Lanao) and what modification should be done to the varying
versions introduced by two legislative houses.
In short, as the bill underwent legislative
process, albeit criticized as substantially severely diluted, its origin remains
a product owned by grassroots Bangsamoro communities; not just by the
Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC)[9]. As such, the failure to pass the bill did not only frustrated the momentum, it
also affected entirely the implementation of the anticipated reform within ARMM,
including the implementation of the rest of the significant aspects of normalization
under CAB.
Further, a cursory looked on the proposed
federal geographic map of the proponents showed territorial incompatibility compared with that of the proposed Bangsamoro core territory mentioned in the BBL. Under
Resolution Joint No. 10, Mindanao is subdivided into Northern Mindanao,
southern Mindanao, and the Bangsamoro region which seemingly covers only
Marawi, part of Lanao Norte and Lanao Sur.[10]
It’s not even a replica of the current geographic area under ARMM, much more of
the areas mentioned under BBL. It simply showed that it’s not in sync to
regional aspirations, albeit too premature to speculate at this juncture that the agenda is exploitative of regional needs at the pressure of coalition
politics.
Some Bangsamoro leaders opined that if the
Philippines intend to change the current system into a federal state, then it
has to have a model which is suitable to its contextual politico-social landscape
as a nation. Thus, it was proposed to pass CAB-compliant BBL first, present this in a
plebiscite for social acceptance, establish Bangsamoro government, witness the election of their parliament,
experience transitional justice and other policy reforms and observe how this
can be replicated if applicable as a political configuration for the entire
archipelago.
Drawbacks on federalism
Christian Monsod, one of the framers of the 1987
Constitution, prefers that the Local Government Code of 1991 must rather be
amended to improve internal revenue allotment of marginalized municipalities instead
of risking charter change for federal form of government where power devolution can be “hijacked”
by local political patrons and dynasties.[11]
If the latter continues to influence our political lives, the election of prime
minister therefore, can just be a matter of political arrangement of dominant
party or of parties who can immediately coalesce when interests are accommodated
and settled.
Contrary to the assertions of few, the 1987
Philippine Constitution is not antiquated to be pliant to the needs of time. It
is yet to reach its third decade of existence as the law of the land. It hasn’t
reached yet the maturity of aging nations when it can be declared dysfunctional
and irrelevant in governing peoples. Unlike the constitution of other
civilizations where ours drew inspiration, e.g. America ratified their constitution
in 1788 and although it underwent 27 amendments but it were done solely to increase
protection of civil liberties and to improve the efficiency of government
functions.
Moreover, it’s easy to doubt federalism as a
remedy to national problems. Devolving powers for revenue and resource
management may increase local capacities to generate funds to mobilize social services but it can never resolve our burgeoning foreign debts razing in
trillion. Our poverty is related to our indebtedness; not just about inadequate
governance and political structure. We note that in the last few years, improving
fiscal strength is a struggle to pay our foreign and domestic debts apart from
allocating budget for social services. Note too how our debts impacted on selling government
assets to private companies and our dependency on private investors for our
economy to survive.
Lawmakers' tongues speak of federalizing a
country like cooking a dish. So long as there is fire, the spices and
condiments are mixed, menu is a good temporal fix. But no. Policy advocacy
needs to be digested by its motivation, its desired strategic outcome, its sustainability
and social inspiration or acceptance. This excludes yet the entailing period required for constituency-building that will support charter change for federal government,
constitutional conventions, rewriting of the constitution, national public education
and consultations, policy advocacy in the houses, policy debates as proposed
bill goes legislative process, generation of public recommendations, etc. etc.
etc. And then, we need to ask ourselves:
is this legislative agenda coming from the people, advocated by the people,
supported by the people and upheld by the people? No, we know where it’s coming
from. Ergo, how can it truly resolve a protracted rebellion unless the government
and rebel organizations focus on working at reaching a negotiated political
settlement of the problem?
In the end, let me say that the concept of federalism
is good. The concept. Its however reliant on the political maturity of the
people, its economic resiliency and the disbandment of political dynasty too
for its effective applicability.
You see, politics can use any word to make
change as a buzzword. But every lives of every Filipino is not just a campaign
stamping pad to legitimize political interests of the few. The matter on
charter change for bureaucratic reengineering is merely cosmetic and therefore
still a waste of money and energy. The efforts to drive constitutional
amendment should rather be focused on poverty reduction and social reform.
Yes, federalism is maybe a theoretical expression
of regional autonomy. And, no. No one can make use of the word federalism to summarily
renege on the implementation and the substance of the GPH and MILF peace
agreement. It’s no easy job. Best advice is to go back to the roadmap.
[1] Bataveljic,
Dragan (2012). Federalism: The Concept, Development and Future, International
Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, Vol. 2 No. 24 (special Issue). Web: http://www.ijhssnet.com/journals/Vol_2_No_24_Special_Issue_December_2012/4.pdf
Retrieved: June 6, 2016.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Hueglin,
Thomas. (1999). Early Modern Concepts for a Late Modern World: Althusius on
Community and Federalism, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Waterloo.
[4] Ibid.
p. 27.
[5]
Sabillo, K. A (2016). Federalism will empower LGUs—Nene Pimentel, Philippine
Daily Inquirer, Manila, Philippines. Web http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/785781/federalism-will-empower-lgus-nene-pimentel
Retrieved: June 6, 2016
[6]
Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines (2016). The Local Government
Code. Philippines. Web: http://www.gov.ph/downloads/1991/10oct/19911010-RA-7160-CCA.pdf
(Retrieved: June 5, 2016).
[7]
Senate of the Republic of the Philippines (2008). Joint Resolution to Convene
the Congress Into a Constituent Assembly for the Purpose of Revising the
Constitution to Establish a Federal System of Government. Philippines.
[8]
GMANewsOnline (2008). House Resolution Supports Change in the form of
government. Manila, Philippines. Web: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/93727/news/nation/house-resolution-supports-change-in-form-of-government
Retrieved: June 5, 2016
[9] Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace
Process (OPAPP) (2016). The Bangsamoro Transition Commission. Manila,
Philippines. Web: http://www.opapp.gov.ph/bangsamoro-transition-commission
Retrieved: June 5, 2016.
[10]
Senate of the Republic of the Philippines (2008). Joint Resolution to Convene
the Congress Into a Constituent Assembly for the Purpose of Revising the
Constitution to Establish a Federal System of Government. Philippines. Web: http://senate.gov.ph/14th_congress/resolutions/sjr-10.pdf
(June 6, 2016).
[11] Billones,
Trisha (2016). Monsod prefers change on LGU Code over federalism. ABS-CBN News,
Quezon City, Philippines, http://news.abs-cbn.com/nation/06/03/16/monsod-prefers-change-in-lgu-code-over-federalism
Retieved: June 6, 2016.
