Amendments and Revision Case

RAUL L. LAMBINO and ERICO B.G.R. No. 174153

AUMENTADO, TOGETHER WITH 6,327,952REGISTERED VOTERS,
Petitioners,- versus - THE COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS, Respondent.

Facts:

On 15 February 2006, petitioners in G.R. No. 174153, namely Raul L. Lambino and

Erico B. Aumentado (Lambino Group'),with other groups and individuals,
commenced gathering signatures for an initiative petition to change the 1987
Constitution by modifying Sections 1-7 of Article VI (Legislative Department) and
Sections 1-4 of Article VII (Executive Department) and by adding Article XVIII entitled
'Transitory Provisions. These proposed changes will shift the present Bicameral-
Presidential system to a Unicameral-Parliamentary form of government. The Lambino
Group filed a petition with the COMELEC to hold a plebiscite that will ratify their
initiative petition under Section 5(b) and (c) and Section 7 of Republic Act No. 6735 or
the Initiative and Referendum Act (RA6735'). The Lambino Group alleged that their
petition had the support of 6,327,952 individuals constituting at least twelve per
centum (12%) of all registered voters, with each legislative district represented by at
least three per centum(3%) of its registered voters. The Group also claimed that
COMELEC election registrars had verified the signatures of the 6.3 million
individuals. The Lambino Group prayed that after due publication of their petition, the
COMELEC should submit the following proposition in a plebiscite for the voters'
ratification and On 30 August 2006, the Lambino Group filed an Amended
Petition with the COMELEC indicating modifications in the proposed Article XVIII
(Transitory Provisions) of their initiative

Issue:
Whether the Lambino Groups initiative petition complies with Section 2, Article XVII of
the Constitution on amendments to the Constitution through a people's initiative.

Ruling:
No, the initiative petition does not comply with Section 2, Art. XVII of the constitution on
direct proposal by the people Under Section 2, Article XVII of the Constitution states
that it is the governing constitutional provision that allows a people's initiative to propose
amendments to the Constitution 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. In the case there is no doubt
whatsoever that the Lambino Group's initiative is a revision and not an amendment.
Thus, the present initiative is void and unconstitutional because it violates Section 2,
Article XVII of the Constitution limiting the scope of a people's initiative to Amendments
to this Constitution. To allow this constitutionally infirm initiative, propelled by
deceptively gathered signatures, to alter basic principles in the Constitution is to allow a
desecration of the Constitution. To allow such alteration and desecration is to lose this
Court's raison d'etre.