Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday called on government leaders to put their energy into solving the COVID-19 crisis in the country instead of prioritizing their agenda of charter reform.
“Dapat ‘yung parati natin ditong target, ang tinututukan natin ngayon, lahat ng makakatulong para mahinto na itong COVID transmission dito sa atin,” she in her radio show.
[What we should always target and focus on is everything that may help in addressing COVID transmission in the country.]
“Kung anu-anong iniisip na hindi naman nakakatulong sa COVID-19. Yung gusto pag-usapan yung Charter change, pag-usapan pero ‘wag naman sana sa panahon ngayon,” Robredo added.
[They keep thinking of things that are not even related to COVID-19. Those who want to talk about Charter change may do so, but please, not during these hard times.]
Robredo also lamented the fact that recent actions of the government has shown that the administration has different priorities while cases of the novel virus continue to soar each day.
“Ang dami nating pinagkakaabalahan Anti-Terror [Law], pagpasara ng ABS-CBN, na hindi naman sumasagot sa pagpahinto ng COVID,” she added.
[We have been so busy on other things — from the Anti-Terror [Law] to the shutdown of ABS-CBN, which do not in any way help in stopping COVID.]
The League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) recently renewed their support for Cha-cha by proposing to institutionalize the so-called Mandanas Ruling of the Supreme Court in the Constitution. Under the ruling, regions will also get their share from all national taxes, apart from internal revenue allotments.
Bayan Muna Party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate opposed the move, agreeing that this is a “misplaced priority” of the administration.
“The move for Cha-cha especially now is a waste of time, effort and the much-needed funds that should be re-channelled in fighting COVID-19,” he said.
