Executive Order No. 10 was signed on December 7, 2016, by
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte which created a consultative committee to review the 1987
Constitution of the Philippines.
The move officially set in motion the process for amending the 30-year-old charter and set up a
federal system
Federalism is a combined or compound mode of government that combines a general government (the central or "federal" government) with regional governments ( provincial, state, cantonal, territorial, or other sub-unit governments) in a single p ...
of government in the Philippines aimed at ending the
Moro conflict
The Moro conflict is an insurgency in the Mindanao region of the Philippines, which has involved multiple armed groups, and has been ongoing since March 1968. Peace deals have been signed between the Philippine government and two major arme ...
and further opening up of the
Philippine economy.
Background
Rodrigo Duterte campaigned for
decentralization
Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those regarding planning and decision making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group.
Conce ...
and a shift to federal government during the
2016 Philippine presidential election. In an October 2014 forum organized by ''Federal Movement for a Better Philippines'' 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 highly urbanized city in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines and capital of the Cebu Province. Acc ...
prior to joining the presidential race, the then mayor of Davao City called for the creation of two federal states for
Moro people
The Moro people or Bangsamoro people are the 13 Muslim-majority ethnolinguistic Austronesian groups of Mindanao, Sulu, and Palawan, native to the region known as the Bangsamoro (lit. ''Moro nation'' or ''Moro country''). As Muslim-majorit ...
as a solution to the problems besetting
Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
.
Mayor Duterte said that
Nur Misuari
Nur Misuari ( Tausug: ''Nūr Miswāri'', born Nurallaji Pinang Misuari; March 3, 1939) is a Moro Filipino revolutionary and politician, founder and leader of the Moro National Liberation Front.
Early and Personal life
Nur Misuari was born o ...
and his
Moro National Liberation Front
The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF; ar, الجبهة الوطنية لتحرير مورو) is a political organization in the Philippines that was founded in 1972. It started as a splinter group of the Muslim Independence Movement. The ...
don't see eye-to-eye with the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF; ar, ''Jabhat Taḥrīr Moro al-ʾIslāmiyyah'') is a group based in Mindanao seeking an autonomous region of the Moro people from the central government. The group has a presence in the Bangsamoro r ...
which the administration of 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 ...
had inked a peace deal with. He also said that the "template of the
Bangsamoro Basic Law is federal," but what is granted to the Bangsamoro should also be granted to other Moro groups and other regions in the country.
In a dialogue with the
Makati Business Club prior to the elections, Duterte said he is open to "toning down the Constitution" in order to accommodate more foreign investors to the Philippines.
He also said he is open to up to 70 percent foreign ownership of businesses in the country and foreign lease of lands up to 60 years, but will "leave it to Congress to decide." The current constitution only allows 40 percent ownership for foreigners.
In his first
State of the Nation Address after winning the elections, Duterte vowed that he would be stepping down from power even before his term ends in 2022 if Congress can set up the federal system in the next few years.
He urged both houses of Congress to look into the federal semi–presidential form of government and said that "If you hurry up the federal system of government, you can submit to the Filipino people
n thefourth, fifth year… You call for a referendum. And after that, call for a presidential elections." By the time Duterte signed Executive Order No. 10 on December 7, 2016, several legislators have filed bills to amend the Constitution, including Senators
Franklin Drilon and
Juan Miguel Zubiri
Juan Miguel "Migz" Fernandez Zubiri (; born April 13, 1969) is a Filipino businessman and politician serving as the Senate President of the Philippines since July 25, 2022. Since 2016, he has been on his second stint in the Senate, first servi ...
who called for a
constitutional convention, and Senators
Ralph Recto
Ralph Gonzalez Recto (; born January 11, 1964) is a Filipino politician, who, since 2022, is serving as the representative for Batangas' 6th district and is one of the House Deputy Speakers. He previously served three terms in the Senate: fr ...
and
Richard J. Gordon who asked Congress to amend the restrictive economic provisions in the Constitution.
In the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
, Deputy Speaker
Gwendolyn Garcia filed a resolution calling both the House and the
Senate to convene as a
constitutional assembly which passed the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments on October 19, 2016.
Provisions
Executive Order No. 10 provides for the creation of a panel of not more than 25 members to "study, conduct consultations, and review the provisions of the 1987 Constitution including, but not limited to, the provisions on the structure and powers of the government, local governance, and economic policies."
The consultative committee shall represent the different regions and sectors of the country and shall be headed by a Chairperson who will preside over its deliberations. The order also provides for the inclusion of the
Executive Secretary in the committee who shall act as an observer during its deliberations. It also states that all committee members shall be appointed or designated by the president.
The order lists down the qualifications of the committee members such as being a Filipino natural-born citizen, resident and voter, at least 25 years of age, and of "recognized probity, independence, nationalism, patriotism, and expertise in his field."
It provides each member of the committee with not more than 2 technical and support staff with the
Presidential Management Staff serving as its secretariat.
The order also sets out the internal rules and procedures and the filling of vacancies in the committee, and orders the
Department of Budget and Management to determine and provide its funding requirements and member's compensation. It also endeavors the consultative committee to complete its work and present its recommendations and proposals to the president, who will then submit them to Congress, in 6 months after it has convened.
Consultative committee
On April 10, 2017, just before leaving for a series of state visits to
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
,
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
and
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...
, President Duterte said he will name the 25 members of the ConCom after the draft of a new Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) is submitted and if there is substantial progress in the peace process with the
National Democratic Front (NDF).
The BBL was drafted by the 21-member Bangsamoro Transition Commission, composed of 11 nominees from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and 10 from the Philippine government. Duterte also said that he is waiting for substantial progress in the peace talks with the NDF, particularly on the Comprehensive Agreement on Political and Constitutional Reforms, before announcing the composition of the ConCom.
Members of the Consultative Committee
*
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 ...
(Chairperson)
*
Aquilino Pimentel Jr.
*Randolph Climaco Parcasio
*Antonio Arellano
*Susan Ubalde-Ordinario
*Arthur Aguilar
*Reuben Canoy
*Roan Libarios
*Laurence Wacnang
*Ali Pangalian Balindong
*Edmund Soriano Tayao
*Eddie Mapag Alih
*
Bienvenido Reyes
*
Julio Cabral Teehankee
*
Antonio Nachura
*Virgilio Bautista
*Ranhilio Aquino
*Rodolfo Robles
*Victor de la Serna
*Jose Martin Azcarraga Loon
*Rex Cambronero Robles
*Ferdinand Bocobo
See also
*
Constitutional reform in the Philippines
*
Federalism in the Philippines
Federalism in the Philippines ( fil, Pederalismo sa Pilipinas) refers to political movements in the Philippines that are variants of federalism. Federalism has grown in popularity among Filipinos in recent decades, with multiple political candid ...
*
List of executive orders by Rodrigo Duterte
References
{{Rodrigo Duterte
Executive order (Philippines)
2016 in the Philippines
Legal history of the Philippines
Reform in the Philippines
Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte