The Ateneo Professional Schools Spearhead a Debate on Federal Philippines

As the discussions on federalism continue to intensify, the Ateneo Professional Schools, composed of the Schools of Government, Law, Graduate School of Business, and Medicine and Public Health, organized a forum titled “Debate on Federal Philippines: A Discussion on the Social, Political, and Economic Viability of Federalism in the Philippines” on 09 March, 2018 at the Rockwell Auditorium, Ateneo Professional Schools, Makati City.

The event also featured the Ateneo School of Government’s recently published book, “Debate on Federal Philippines: A Citizen's Handbook,” written by Dr. Eduardo Araral, Jr., Dr. Paul Hutchcroft, Dr. Gilberto Llanto, Asec. Jonathan Malaya, Dr. Ronald Mendoza, and Dr. Julio Teehankee.

Dr. Antonette Palma-Angeles, Vice President for the Ateneo Professional Schools, welcomed the participants and distinguished guest speakers. She mentioned that the forum was organized to provide a space for rational discussions and issue-based discourse.

The first speaker, Prof. Alfredo S. Sureta Jr. of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office, argued that the shift to a federal system is a renegotiation and debate on the distribution of political power between regional constituency and the center unit.

Asec. Jonathan E. Malaya of the Department of the Interior and Local Government briefly presented the PDP-Laban Model of Federalism. To answer why a shift to Federalism is needed, he said that the problem is systemic. Despite electing officials every three or six years, the country still struggles with the same problems. In discussing the objectives of Federalism, he emphasized that President Duterte’s primary goal in pushing for this reform is to “achieve peace in Mindanao.” While the primary goal is the shift to a federal system, Asec. Malaya underscored that “if this entire discussion of federalism at least leads to an amendment of the Local Government Code, then it would have been all worth it.”

Three (3) reactors were invited to present their views. First, Dr. Florangel Rosario-Braid, a member of the 1986 Constitutional Commission, laid down a Framework for Debate on Federalism with a list of guide questions that can aid the public in assessing the two sides of the issue. She also noted the importance of holding nationwide consultations as part of the process for pushing for this reform.

On the other hand, Dr. Rosario G. Manasan, Senior Research Fellow at Philippine Institute for Development Studies, focused on the potential costs of the shift to the federal system, and raised whether further decentralization is already sufficient to address the current problems that we are facing.

Lastly, as a fitting conclusion to the debate, Dean Sedfrey M. Candelaria of the Ateneo Law School posted the question, “Do we take the leap of faith?” In these challenging times, the faith of the people on their government’s capacity for fair judgement and right leadership has never been more important.

Atty. Anthony A. Abad, Faculty Member of the Ateneo Law School, facilitated the discussion during the open forum, where the guests had the opportunity to ask questions.

While the forum ended with no consensus on whether the country should adopt the federal system, it was established that there is a growing need for debates, discussions, and access to right information in order to move forward. The event was attended by representatives from the academe, civil society organizations, government agencies, embassies, and business sector.

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