Delegate Goding Ramos told me yesterday that Marcos will exercise the powers of the presidency under the 1935 Constitution and will, in addition, be made prime minister and president in the interim assembly under the New Constitution.
The draft provision also provides that all decrees, special orders and all the letters of instruction made by the President of the Philippines “are hereby confirmed and ratified” and therefore are made legal and binding as part of the law of the land. The National Assembly may consider the question of the lifting or non-lifting of martial law, but then, the National Assembly can be called only at the discretion of the prime minister.
This is a little too much. We are really being made rubber stamps of the people in power, Ramos complained. He said that the only reason he was in rapport with the majority, until this time, was because of his desire to push through a parliamentary form of government for the country.
Manong Tony Raquiza, an old fox who has been an ally of Marcos for years, agreed with this observation. This was not necessary; the President’s power can be sustained by us constitutionally without having to put the words “are hereby confirmed and ratified.” What will future generations say if this were approved?
Even Raquiza—bless his rotten soul!—promised to work for the removal of the objectionable features.
Upon my return home. I found a Sister Digna and another nun waiting for me. They asked me if I could meet them tomorrow, Sunday, at their headquarters, or else at the session hall of the Convention on Monday. They wanted to give Sister Sonia Aldeguer some information to enable her to assess alternatives and decide on a course of action. (Sonia is presently in Rome.)