Senator Robinhood Padilla on Thursday disclosed that he is pushing for amendments to the economic provisions under the 1987 Constitution for the country’s economic growth as he proposed the changes to the Charter through the Constituent Assembly or Con-Ass.
The lawmaker — who recently filed Resolution of Both Houses 3 calling Congress to convene as a ConAss and propose amendments to the Constitution, particularly in economic provisions, which are “are perceived to be barriers to trade and investment responsible for the continuous decline of foreign direct investments, and placed the country as one of the most restrictive economies by international standards.”
He added that a separate voting will be held both in the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Padilla, who chairs the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes, lamented that the Philippines is currently lagging behind its neighbors in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in terms of foreign direct investment registry “despite its offer of tax holidays, and other fiscal incentives.”
He blamed the country’s complicated investment regulations stemming from the Constitution’s prohibitive economic provisions.
“To accelerate economic growth, and fulfill its international commitment, the Philippines must amend its Constitution by removing these restrictive economic provisions to allow foreign businesses to directly invest in a more conducive landscape,” Padilla said, scoring the Philippines ratified international trade and investment liberalization treaties to secure foreign investments and foster economic cooperation.
Padilla, however, stressed that the Constitution’s current economic provisions “restrict certain activities of foreign investors.”
Among these activities are the exploration, development, and utilization of natural resources; ownership of private lands; grant of congressional franchises; ownership and operation of public utilities; ownership of educational institutions; and ownership and management of mass media and advertising.