Peoples Initiative: No sufficient enabling law to amend the

Constitution
The recent effort to amend the Constitution through peoples initiative met the
same fate as the previous ones. As early as 1997, in the case of Defensor-Santiago
vs. COMELEC (G.R. No. 127325, 19 March 1997), the Supreme Court already
decided, although with vigorous dissenting opinions, that the law intended to
provide the mechanism for peoples initiative is not sufficient. Lets take a look at
that case.
The 1935 and 1973

Constitutions recognize

only

two

methods

of

proposing

amendments to the Constitution: (1) by Congress upon a vote of three-fourths of

all

its

members;

and

(2)

by

constitutional

convention.

The 1987

Constitution added a third method the people initiative. Article 17, Section 2 of the
1987 Constitution reads:
SEC. 2. Amendments to this Constitution may likewise be directly proposed by the
people through initiative upon a petition of at least twelve per centum of the total
number of registered voters, of which every legislative district must be represented
by at least three per centum of the registered voters therein. No amendment under
this section shall be authorized within five years following the ratification of this
Constitution nor oftener than once every five years thereafter.
The Congress shall provide for the implementation of the exercise of this right.
This provision, however, is not self-executory. While the Constitution has
recognized or granted that right, the people cannot exercise it if Congress, for
whatever reason, does not provide for its implementation.
In 1989, Congress passed Republic Act No. 6735 (also known as the Peoples
Initiative and Referendum Act), which is intended to cover initiative to propose
amendments to the Constitution. However, R.A. No. 6735 is incomplete,
inadequate, or wanting in essential terms and conditions insofar as initiative on
amendments to the Constitution is concerned.

R.A. 6735 failed to provide for the details in the implementation of initiative and
referendum on amendments to the Constitution, in contrast to that of national and
local legislation. In all of its twenty-three sections, RA 6735 relates to initiative on
amendments to the Constitution only in the following manner:
(a)

it

mentions

the

word

Constitution

in

Section

2;

(b) it defines initiative on the Constitution and includes it in the enumeration of the
three

systems

of

initiative

in

Section

3;

(c) it speaks of plebiscite as the process by which the proposition in an initiative on

the

Constitution

may

be

approved

or

rejected

by

the

people;

(d) it reiterates the constitutional requirements as to the number of voters who

should

sign

the

petition;

and

(e) it provides for the date of effectivity of the approved proposition.

However, Section 2 does not suggest an initiative on amendments to the
Constitution. Section 2 reads:
SECTION 2. Statement and Policy. The power of the people under a system of
initiative and referendum to directly propose, enact, approve or reject, in whole or
in part, the Constitution, laws, ordinances, or resolutions passed by any legislative
body upon compliance with the requirements of this Act is hereby affirmed,
recognized and guaranteed.
Section 2 speaks of the peoples power to directly propose, enact, approve, or
reject, in whole or in part, the Constitution through the system of initiative
which is not allowed under the Constitution. Initiative on the Constitution is
confined only to proposals to AMEND, and Section 2 is silent as to amendments on
the Constitution.
Section 3 (Definition of Terms), on the other hand, defines initiative on
amendments to the Constitution and mentions it as one of the three systems of

initiative. However, R.A. 6735 does not provide for the contents of a petition for
initiative on the Constitution, as compared to that of national and local laws.
Indeed, while the law provides subtitles for National Initiative and Referendum
(Subtitle II) and for Local Initiative and Referendum (Subtitle III), no subtitle is
provided for initiative on the Constitution. This conspicuous silence as to the latter
simply means that the main thrust of the Act is initiative and referendum on
national and local laws. If Congress intended R.A. No. 6735 to fully provide for the
implementation of the initiative on amendments to the Constitution, it could have
provided for a subtitle therefor, considering that in the order of things, the primacy
of interest, or hierarchy of values, the right of the people to directly propose
amendments to the Constitution is far more important than the initiative on
national and local laws.