House probe on alleged Cha-cha bribery sought

The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives has filed a resolution seeking an investigation of reports that people were allegedly bribed into participating in a signature drive calling for a revision of the 1987 Constitution through a people's initiative.

- DELON PORCALLA

House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro of partylist ACT Teachers led the filing of House Resolution 1541 for the conduct of an inquiry, in aid of legislation, in the ongoing Charter change signature drive across the country.

"We have received numerous reports about this signature drive where people are told to sign a fake people's initiative form for purposes of Charter change. We have this in Tarlac, Quezon City, Caloocan and even in Cavite, and these are only a few. There are more, actually," Castro said.

"Many have been promised financial assistance, while some have been told they will receive gifts during the Christmas season (in 2023). We have also received reports that PWDs (persons with disabilities) were also duped into on to this Cha-cha," she said.

Chairperson Emmi de Jesus of militant women's group Gabriela, for her part, said that what the country needs is "an increase in our wages, not a change in Constitution" in light of "escalating prices and the diminishing real value of our salaries."

"It is a complete lie to claim that what we need to (do is) amend the Constitution to address the rampant poverty we face today, when what they really want to impose is term extension and lifting the limits for the ownership of foreigners in the Philippines,” De Jesus said.

“If the government is really keen on uplifting the lives of the people, then it must prioritize bills which will increase the workers’ salaries. Gabriela’s P750 wage increase bill is a concrete means to narrow the gap between the family living wage and the present meager wages,” she said.