MANILA, Philippines - Nacionalista Party (NP) standard-bearer Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. said changing the Constitution would not be a priority under his presidency.
Speaking during a presidential forum at the University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Diliman, Quezon City, Villar said he would not prioritize moves to change the Charter through constitutional convention or constitutional assembly.
Answering a question posed by Peter Wallace of the Personnel Management Association of the Philippines, Villar said he would face the efforts to change the Constitution once it is presented to him.
In case moves for Charter change are revived anew under his administration, Villar said he would present the option before the Filipino people through a referendum.
“Any change in the Constitution would not be a priority if I make it as president. I do not believe that it is important. Nevertheless, I am not afraid of any constitutional change and I think any Constitution can be changed and should be changed from time to time, particularly on the economic provisions,” he said.
“I will leave that decision to our people. If there will be a proposal to change our Constitution, I will propose a referendum and give it to them. In my case, I don’t really care whether we should have one or not. What is important is the leadership,” he added.
But Villar did not touch on the sensitive issue in the Constitution which limits land ownership by foreigners and the 60-40 share for foreign and local investors.
“I think we have sufficiently opened up to foreigners but I am not closed to that (idea),” he said.
Asked whether he would rather have power or wealth, Villar said anybody who aspires to help the country would learn that one needs power to implement his vision.
Coming from a poor family from Tondo, Manila, Villar admitted that he first dreamt of getting his own family and siblings out of Tondo by persevering to become self-reliant.
Villar boasted of having started from a small gravel and sand business before venturing into real estate. In his younger years, he accompanied his mother to Divisoria market to sell shrimps.
He defended anew his rise from poverty and told his critics to believe that someone who was poor could get rich without being corrupt. In fact, he assured his opponents that when he joined politics he was no longer engaged in any business, contradicting allegations that he had used his position to benefit his companies with the C-5 road extension project.
“I have been a businessman for a long time and ever since I held posts in government, I have never been a businessman. I was an industry leader before I joined politics,” he stressed.
If elected president, Villar promised not to spend millions for a single dinner, like the reported extravagant dinner of President Arroyo and her entourage in New York City last year.
“In my opinion, that was too much. That was wrong. It is not right that we show this to our people while majority of them are poor. These kinds of dinners should not be held, especially by a public official like the President. A public official should not be doing this,” he said in Filipino. – With Ric Sapnu
By Christina Mendez
The Philippine Star
Updated February 09, 2010 12:00 AM
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