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People's Initiative (or "PI") is a common appellative in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
that refers to either a mode for constitutional amendment provided by the 1987 Philippine Constitution or to the act of pushing an
initiative In political science, an initiative (also known as a popular initiative or citizens' initiative) is a means by which a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters can force a government to choose either to enact a law or hold a pu ...
(national or local) allowed by the Philippine Initiative and Referendum Act of 1987. The appellative also refers to the product of either of those initiatives. The provision in the 1987
Constitution of the Philippines The Constitution of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas'' or ''Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas'', Spanish: ''Constitución de la República de Filipinas'') is the constitution or the supreme law of the Republic of the Philippines ...
allowing for a "people's initiative" as one of the modes for
constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, t ...
has been called the "people's initiative clause." The other modes allowed by the Constitution involve a
Constituent Assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...
(or "Con-Ass") or a Constitutional Convention (or "Con-Con"), both of which also allow a total revision of the charter. The appellation (also known as "PI") also refers to the act—allowed by the law-given
right Rights are law, legal, social, or ethics, ethical principles of Liberty, freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convent ...
of the
Filipino people Filipinos ( tl, Mga Pilipino) are the people who are citizens of or native to the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos today come from various Austronesian ethnolinguistic groups, all typically speaking either Filipino, English and/or other ...
—of directly initiating
statutes A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...
or calling for
referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
s on both the
national National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
and the
local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
level.


Summary

This is as defined in the Initiative and Referendum Act:


Constitutional amendment initiatives

The process of amending the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines is popularly known to many Filipinos as
Charter Change A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, t ...
. Any proposed amendment or revision must be ratified by the majority of Filipinos in a plebiscite. Article XVII, Section 2 of the Constitution states:
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 votes 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.
An enabling law for this Article XVII, Section 2 Philippine Constitutional provision, called the Initiative and Referendum Act, was authored in 1987 by senators
Raul Roco Raul Sagarbarria Roco (October 26, 1941 – August 5, 2005) was a political figure in the Philippines. He was the standard-bearer of ''Aksyon Demokratiko'', which he founded in 1997 as a vehicle for his presidential bids in 1998 and 2004. He was ...
(
Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino The Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino () is a centre-right political party in the Philippines. There are no results available for the 2004 election for the House of Representatives, but according to the website of the House, the party held 7 out ...
) and
Neptali Gonzales Neptali Alvaro Gonzales (June 10, 1923 – September 16, 2001), better known as Neptali Gonzales, Sr., was the President of the Philippine Senate from 1992 to 1993, 1995 to 1996, and 1998. Early life and career Neptali Alvaro Gonzales was b ...
(
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...
) and was passed by the
Eighth Congress of the Philippines The 8th Congress of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Ikawalong Kongreso ng Pilipinas''), composed of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives, met from July 27, 1987, until June 17, 1992, during the presidency of Corazon Aquino. This was ...
in 1989. The law provides for the implementation of the exercise of the people's right to initiate a
petition A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication. In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to some offici ...
to amend the Constitution, with the Election Registrar of the
Commission on Elections An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
(Comelec) tasked under the law with the verification of the petition signatures' being by at least twelve per centum of the total number of registered voters in the state. However, the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
declared the Initiative and Referendum Act procedures for amending the constitution as fatally defective, although it didn't affect the operation of the law for other types of initiatives.


1997 People’s Initiative for Reform Modernization and Action

At the tail-end of the
presidency of Fidel Ramos The presidency of Fidel V. Ramos, also known as the Ramos administration spanned for six years from June 30, 1992, to June 30, 1998. Ramos is the first Protestant president of the country, and the first Christian Democrat to be elected, being the ...
, the People's Initiative for Reform Modernization and Action (PIRMA, the Tagalog word for "signature") started a signature campaign for amending the constitution, such as shift to a parliamentary system of government and the lifting of term limits on elected officials, including Ramos himself. The president denied being behind the campaign. The Supreme Court shot down PIRMA's petition, saying that there was no enabling law for it, and that the group's petition was defective.


2006 Sigaw ng Bayan

During the
presidency of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo The presidency of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, also known as the Arroyo administration, spanned nine years from January 20, 2001, to June 30, 2010. She served the remainder of her predecessor Joseph Estrada's term after he was deposed, and she ...
, the Supreme Court rejected the petition of Sigaw ng Bayan, saying that their petition was defective because they did not show the people the full text of the proposed amendments before having them sign the petition.


Statute and referendum initiatives

The People's Initiative can also refer to the right of Filipinos to initiate statutes as well as call for referendums on both the national and local government level, a right given by the Initiative and Referendum Act of 1987.


2014 People's Initiative Against Pork Barrel

From late June to early August 2014, a People's Initiative Against Pork Barrel (PIAP) was repeatedly announced as up for launch in a forthcoming August 23 "people's congress" in
Cebu City Cebu City, officially the City of Cebu ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Sugbo; fil, Lungsod ng Cebu; hil, Dakbanwa sang Sugbo), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Central Visayas Regions of the P ...
. The initiative, a multisectoral
alliance An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
-driven proposition to
criminalize Criminalization or criminalisation, in criminology, is "the process by which behaviors and individuals are transformed into crime and criminals". Previously legal acts may be transformed into crimes by legislation or judicial decision. However, ...
pork barrel ''Pork barrel'', or simply ''pork'', is a metaphor for the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district. The usage originated in American English, and i ...
fund creation and spending, was led by various groups and individuals including Cebu Archbishop
Jose S. Palma Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. * Jose ben Abin * Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galile ...
, the broad #AbolishPorkMovement, the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
-backed Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System, the Church People's Alliance Against Pork Barrel, ePIRMA (Empowered People's Initiative and Reform Movement Alliance), the
Makabayan Makabayang Koalisyon ng Mamamayan (Makabayan; ) is a coalition of twelve party-lists in the House of Representatives of the Philippines. It was founded on April 16, 2009. The founding assembly was held at UP Theatre, Diliman, Quezon City. Party-l ...
Coalition (principally through
Bayan Muna Bayan Muna () is a party-list in the Philippines, a member of the leftist political coalition Makabayan. The motto of the party is ''"New Politics, the Politics of Change"'', against "traditional, elitist, pro-imperialist politics". Its platform i ...
party-list An electoral list is a grouping of candidates for election, usually found in proportional or mixed electoral systems, but also in some plurality electoral systems. An electoral list can be registered by a political party (a party list) or can ...
representative
Neri Colmenares Neri Javier Colmenares (, born December 4, 1959) is a Filipino human rights lawyer and activist. He was an associate of the Asian Law Centre at Melbourne Law School when he was completing his Ph.D. in law on "The Writ of Amparo and the Internat ...
), the Solidarity for Transformation, Youth Act Now, the Scrap Pork Network, and former
Philippine Supreme Court The Supreme Court ( fil, Kataas-taasang Hukuman; colloquially referred to as the ''Korte Suprema'' lso used in formal writing is the highest court in the Philippines. The Supreme Court was established by the Second Philippine Commission on Ju ...
Chief Justice
Reynato Puno Reynato Puno y Serrano, KGCR (Filipino: ''Reynato Serrano Puno''; born May 17, 1940) is a Filipino jurist. He served as the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo unt ...
. The Cebu congress was immediately followed by a signature rally at
Luneta Park Rizal Park ( fil, Liwasang Rizal, es, link=no, Parque Rizal), also known as Luneta Park or simply Luneta, is a historic urban park located in Ermita, Manila. It is considered one of the largest urban parks in the Philippines, covering an area ...
, on August 25, 2014. The proposition was one of civil society's resulting reactions to the
Priority Development Assistance Fund scam The Priority Development Assistance Fund scam, also called the PDAF scam or the pork barrel scam, is a political scandal involving the alleged misuse by several members of the Congress of the Philippines of their Priority Development Assistance ...
of 2013 and the
Million People March The so-called Million People March at Luneta was the first of a series of protests in the Philippines calling for the total abolition of the Pork Barrel fund, triggered by public anger over the Priority Development Assistance Fund scam. Initial ...
and other protests that followed. An exploratory "people's congress" to draft an initiative on spending public funds was first convened by the ePIRMA at the
Asian Institute of Management The Asian Institute of Management (AIM) is an international management school and research institution. It is one of the few business schools in Asia to be internationally accredited with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Busine ...
Conference Center on November 9, 2013, with Puno, Colmenares and ePIRMA's legal-team head Jose M. Roy III leading the conference that was attended by representatives from various groups coming from all over the country. ePIRMA and the "people's congress" alliance later scheduled its first draft to be completed by January 2014 while it was awaiting the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
's decision on prior petitions against both the
Priority Development Assistance Fund The Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) was a discretionary fund in the Philippines available to members of Congress. Originally established as the Countrywide Development Fund (CDF) in 1990, it was designed to allow legislators to fund sm ...
(PDAF) and the "presidential pork" disbursements under
Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of ...
's government's Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP). Petitions against the PDAF were first filed with the Supreme Court by the
Social Justice Society The Social Justice Society (SJS) (Tagalog: Katarungang Panlipunan) is a registered national political party in the Philippines composed of citizens of the Philippines from all walks of life who are bound by a common concern or interest in the pro ...
on August 28, 2013, by
Greco Belgica Greco Antonious Beda Banta Belgica (born March 27, 1978) is a Filipino politician who most recently served as chairman of the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) under the Duterte administration from March to October 2021. Educat ...
et al. on September 3, 2013, and by Pedrito Nepomuceno on September 5, 2013. Petitions against the DAP were filed with the Supreme Court by nine separate groups of petitioners between October 7 and November 7, 2013. The petitioners included the
Integrated Bar of the Philippines The Integrated Bar of the Philippines ( fil, Pinagsamang mga Abogasya ng Pilipinas abbreviated as IBP) is the national organization of lawyers in the Philippines. It is the mandatory bar association for Filipino lawyers. History The IBP was establ ...
, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan,
GABRIELA Women's Party The Gabriela Women's Party (General Assembly Binding Women for Integrity, Reform, Equality, Leadership and Action) or simply GABRIELA, is a progressive Filipino political party that advocates for women's issues and represents Filipino women in the ...
, Bayan Muna,
Ang Kapatiran Ang Kapatiran Party (AKP, ), also known as the Alliance for the Common Good, is a political party in the Philippines founded by Reynaldo "Nandy" Pacheco in 2004. The party participated in the 2007 elections and was not affiliated with either m ...
, and Belgica, among others. On November 19, 2013, the Supreme Court declared the PDAF unconstitutional; a decision on the DAP came out seven and a half months later, on July 1, 2014, also declaring basic parts of the program as unconstitutional. Under the PIAP's proposed Pork Barrel Abolition Act, all budgets submitted to any legislative body shall contain only itemized appropriations, except funds for relief and
rescue operation Rescue comprises responsive operations that usually involve the saving of life, or the urgent treatment of injuries after an accident or a dangerous situation. Tools used might include search and rescue dogs, mounted search and rescue ho ...
s during calamities and funds for intelligence work and security. The proposed legislation also called for the abolition of the Presidential Social Fund, which has also been described as a form of pork barrel. Violators of this law were to be banned for life from holding public office. On November 25, 2014, the ''
Philippine Daily Inquirer The ''Philippine Daily Inquirer'' (''PDI''), or simply the ''Inquirer'', is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines. Founded in 1985, it is often regarded as the Philippines' newspaper of record. The newspaper is the most awarded bro ...
''reported that the Philippine Commission on Elections received the first 10,000 signatures from the initiative thrust in
Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...
. The signatures were from the city's first six districts, a first installment of the required 177,000 signatures from the entire city territory. Meanwhile, PIAP-
Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...
coordinator Mark Lui Aquino said they had yet to submit to the Comelec the 50,000 to 100,000 signatures they had gathered in the metropolis. PIAP-Quezon City spokesperson Malou Turalde said, however, that Quezon City was not the first to submit to the Comelec gathered signatures for the initiative, adding that other legislative districts "just want to be quiet." Aquino also expressed fear that the "Comelec seems unready" and added that, based on his group's monitoring, the Comelec offices in the different cities and municipalities "do not know what to do with the signatures."


Malacañang's resistance to the initiative

On September 4, 2014, Rep. Neri Colmenares announced that the ruling Liberal Party was trying to undermine the people's initiative against the pork barrel system. During his interpellation on the same day, at the
Philippine Congress The Congress of the Philippines ( fil, Kongreso ng Pilipinas, italic=unset) is the legislature of the national government of the Philippines. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, although colloquially the ter ...
budget committee hearing on the 2015 budget for the Philippine
Commission on Elections An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
, Colmenares noticed that the
Malacañang Palace Malacañang Palace ( fil, Palasyo ng Malakanyang, ; es, Palacio de Malacañán), officially known as Malacañan Palace, is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the Philippines. It is located in the Manila distric ...
and its allies in Congress took out the budget that they had placed for a charter change (Cha-Cha) referendum they were planning to launch. Colmenares asked for the budget to be reinserted for the people's initiative plebiscite, but budget committee vice-chair Dakila Cua (Liberal Party, formerly
Lakas Kampi CMD Lakas means ''strength'', ''power'' in Tagalog and may refer to: * Lakas ng Bayan (English: People's Power), a political party in the Philippines * Lakas–CMD, a political party in the Philippines founded in 2009 * Lakas–CMD (1991), a political ...
) said that Colmenares's motion should be made during the committee deliberations on the budget. A number of Liberal Party leaders and spokesmen earlier announced their wish to amend the Constitution to allow President
Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of ...
to run for re-election; as under the present Constitution the President cannot run again for the same office after his single six-year term. Furthermore, groups against the pork barrel noted that the Aquino government had drafted a national budget for 2015 that still contained "pork" in the form of "special purpose funds," thus ignoring the earlier SC ruling on such funds' unconstitutionality as well as salient points in the PIAP. The groups further noted that this pork budget allocation had ballooned to 27 billion pesos, from the previous year's PHP25 billion pesos.The groups urged Congress to junk the budget. On November 25, during the Senate plenary session tackling the said budget, Senator
Miriam Defensor-Santiago Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago ('' née'' Defensor; June 15, 1945 – September 29, 2016) was a Filipino scholar, academic, lawyer, judge, author, and stateswoman who served in all three branches of the Philippine government: judicial, executi ...
raised the same points raised by the Makabayan group in the House of Representatives hearings, boosting the Makabayan position on the budget bill amendments. In January 2015, Palma reiterated the importance of the initiative, saying that although the Supreme Court had already declared the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) as unconstitutional funds, members of Congress continued to enjoy discretionary funds under other forms.


Attack on anti-pork campaigner

On September 29, 2014, minutes after the anti-pork forum in
Tagum City Tagum, officially the City of Tagum ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Tagum; fil, Lungsod ng Tagum), is a 1st class component city and capital of the Davao del Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 296,202 people making it th ...
,
Davao del Norte Davao del Norte ( ceb, Amihanang Dabaw; tl, Hilagang Davao), officially the Province of Davao del Norte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Davao Region in Mindanao. Its capital and largest city is Tagum. The province also includes ...
, which also launched the PIAP in the province, Dexter Ian Selebrado, 32, of the group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas - Davao del Norte (Farmers' Movement of the Philippines - Davao del Norte) and one of the local campaigners against pork barrel funds, was attacked by motorcycle-riding gunmen. As of October 1, the farmer-activist was still in critical condition.


Politicians' resistance to the initiative

In his January 2015 conference with the press, Palma lamented the intervention of
politicians A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
in the turnout of citizens at the signature centers in his
parishes A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
. Apart from a lack of knowledge about the pork barrel, Palma claimed that a low turnout was also a result of there being families who had children enrolled in schools under politicians' pork-funded
scholarships A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarshi ...
whose relatives then refused to sign the proposition. Turnout results in other
dioceses In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...
were also not good, he said. He promised, however, that the Church would not be disheartened and cited the strong support of people in such dioceses as
Calbayog City Calbayog, officially the City of Calbayog ( war, Siyudad han Calbayog; fil, Lungsod ng Calbayog), is a 1st class component city in the province of Samar, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 186,960 people. It lies ...
.


The initiative and the pork barrel issue by 2016

In his blog of July 4, 2016, direct democracy advocate and art critic-painter Jojo Soria de Veyra, a member of ePIRMA, confessed that after the initiative's launch "the signature gathering was mostly left to certain parishes of the more organized Catholic Church, the primary backing of the Cebu Coalition. Sporadic rallies of support were organized by the Makabayan group and provincial groups. Other members of ePIRMA were seen to have moved on to various other national concerns. Manny SD Lopez—ePIRMA's leading convenor and most active campaigner on the road—would also busy himself with organizing the Christian Peace Alliance, one of the groups advocating for a drastic review of some provisions of the then-in-its-final-thrust
Bangsamoro Basic Law The Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL; fil, Batayang Batas para sa Rehiyong Awtonomo ng Bangsamoro), also known as the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), and officially designated as Republic Act No. 11054, is a Philippine law that provided for the establis ...
. Lopez would also form the EdlSA 2.22.15 Coalition, a group that called for President Benigno Aquino III's resignation after the Mamasapano mishap. I submit that in this latter period I was not privy anymore to how the signature-gathering for the initiative on the pork barrel was progressing. I did hear of some pockets of resistance to the initiative, as well as the Comelec's seeming lack of enthusiasm towards verifying the signatures, but that's about it. . . . Then came the various noises leading to the 2016 general election, within which news concerning the initiative's progress were nowhere anymore to be found on Google." De Veyra, also a convenor of a Facebook group called Forum for Direct Democracy, then proceeded in his blog to propose amendments to the Initiative and Referendum Act that would make the law easier for the people to use as well as obligate Comelec to do its part in the initiative process within a limited time period. Meanwhile, on August 31, Senator
Panfilo Lacson Panfilo "Ping" Morena Lacson Sr. (; born June 1, 1948) is a Filipino former politician and police general who served as a Senate of the Philippines, Senator for three terms: from 2001 to 2013 and from 2016 to 2022. He was the Chief of the Phil ...
told the media that "the ₱3.35-trillion proposed budget presented by Malacañang
Duterte administration Rodrigo Duterte became the 16th President of the Philippines on June 30, 2016, succeeding Benigno Aquino III. He was the first president from Mindanao, the first president to have worked in all three branches of government, and the oldest t ...
] to the Senate for congressional approval is laden with 'pork' and violated the Supreme Court rulings on the Priority Development Assistance Fund and Disbursement Acceleration Program."


2020 PIRMA Kapamilya

A after the denial of the franchise of ABS-CBN in 2020, a group called "PIRMA Kapamilya" launched an effort to give
ABS-CBN ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast broadcast network, network tha ...
a franchise via people's initiative.


Local initiatives

Local initiatives, however, appear to be more likely to succeed. The first such initiative, initiated twelve years after the Initiative and Referendum Act was passed, was advanced in 2011 in Barangay Miragrosa,
Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...
, with the aim of stopping the continued influx of informal settlers and the sale of illegal drugs in the barangay. The initiative passed, with 465 in favor and 384 against out of the 3,665 registered voters in the barangay eligible to participate.


See also

*
Constitutional reform in the Philippines Constitutional reform in the Philippines, also known as charter change (colloquially cha-cha), refers to the political and legal processes needed to amend the current 1987 Constitution of the Philippines. Under the common interpretation of the ...
*
Direct democracy Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the Election#Electorate, electorate decides on policy initiatives without legislator, elected representatives as proxies. This differs from the majority of currently establishe ...


References

{{reflist


External links


The 1987 Constitution Of The Republic Of The Philippines

The PIAP website
Law of the Philippines Referendums in the Philippines Politics of the Philippines Initiatives Referendums Direct democracy Democracy Right to petition Sources of law