Monday, March 16, 2009

The Proposal to add 100 more Congressmen in the Philippines

There is a proposal by Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile to increase the number of congressmen or women from 250 to 350 for - according to the good Senator, one of the reason for his proposal is the increasing number of the Philippine population and thus there is a need to add another 100 congressmen for better representation.
I say that the said proposal should be taken with a grain of salt. This country no longer needs so many lawmakers. In fact, we have so many good laws and the problem is not with the lack or inadequacy of laws or legislation but with implementation. Many of of our laws are deemed to be "dead laws" due to lack of implementation. So, why add another 100 more congressmen when we can't even properly implement our existing laws?
I say that instead of increasing the number of congressmen to 100, their number should be decreased to more than a 100. A 100 more congressmen would translate to a 100 more for their salaries, allowances, perks, bodyguards, and another 100 more funds for their pork barrel. (And perhaps but hopefully not, there would be another 100 congressmen that would dip their fingers in funds earmarked for public roads).
Instead of adding a 100 more lawmakers it would be better for this country to have more doctors, nurses, engineers, and teachers specially at this time of economic crises.






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