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Speaker wants constituent assembly by January 2018

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MANILA (UPDATED) - House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez wants to speed up discussions on the proposal to shift the system of government from unitary to Federal through a constituent assembly.&quot;What I intend to do, I would like to propose to the Senate president yung maaari mag-convene na kami ngayong Enero as a Constituent Assembly at pagkatapos kami na rin ang magke-create nung technical working group na parang constitutional commission para matulungan kami sa paggagawa nung draft nung revised constitution,&quot; the Speaker said. In a phone interview on DZMM Friday, <a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/31/16/house-speaker-alvarez-pushes-for-federalism-in-message-for-new-year">Alvarez</a> said the House of Representatives has conducted hearings in various places in the country.&quot;Hindi masyadong mahirap sa amin sa House of Representatives, nagkaroon na kami ng committee hearing mahigit isang taon na,&quot; he said.Last year, President Rodrigo Duterte signed an <a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/08/16/duterte-signs-eo-to-study-charter-change">Executive Order</a> creating a team that will study proposals to amend the 1987 Constitution.Alvarez said people from Luzon may not fully appreciate the importance of changing the present form of government.&quot;Unang-una, yung ating usapin sa BBL na kung saan marami ring dapat baguhin sa ating Saligang Batas upang sa ganun ay magkakaroon ng ganap na autonomy doon sa area na yun.&quot; &quot;Kung babaguhin din natin, bakit hindi totally gawin nating federal form of government at lahat ng rehiyon sa Pilipinas ay makikinabang, hindi lang yung isang rehiyon,&quot; he pointed out.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/16/16/duterte-says-he-wont-run-for-president-under-federal-govt">READ: Duterte says he won&#x27;t run for president under federal gov&#x27;t</a></li></ul>Although there is no timetable yet, Alvarez said they would like to see first the revised draft of the Constitution.&quot;Kung maaari sana ito ay mai-submit for ratification or plebesito ngayong Mayo na election itong sa mga barangay captain, magandang isabay na yan doon para of course, yung gastos ng gubyerno at saka yung information driver magkakaroon pa ng sapat na panahon,&quot; he said.On Tuesday, Duterte said he wants the Philippines&#x27; new charter to incorporate provisions against corruption. He said the present Constitution allows corruption to thrive. He also downplayed fears that he would use it to cling to <a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/30/17/duterte-willing-to-clip-presidential-powers-to-stop-corruption-spokesman">power</a>.Aside from stopping corruption, Duterte believes that federalism would ease the way to peace with Muslim insurgents, and is the country’s last chance to settle armed conflict.Some critics believe that instead of overhauling the entire government structure, it may be better to just implement specific reforms.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/11/01/16/up-professor-warns-of-federalism-risks">WATCH: U.P. professor warns of federalism risks</a></li></ul>Under the federal-presidential system proposed by former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel Jr. there will be 11 federal states. Luzon will have four states: Northern Luzon, Central Luzon, Bicol, and Southern Tagalog. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/video/nation/06/27/16/watch-how-ph-will-be-under-federal-system">WATCH: How PH will be under federal system</a></li></ul>The Visayas will be composed of Eastern Visayas, Central Visayas, Western Visayas, and the &quot;Mimparom&quot; state of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, Palawan, Romblon, and Masbate.Three more states will comprise Mindanao: Northern Mindanao, Southern Mindanao, and the Bangsamoro.Six senators will be elected by each of the 11 federal states.

MANILA (UPDATED) - House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez wants to speed up discussions on the proposal to shift the system of government from unitary to Federal through a constituent assembly.

MANILA (UPDATED) - House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez wants to speed up discussions on the proposal to shift the system of government from unitary to Federal through a constituent assembly.