AMENDMENTS
No: G. R. No. L-174153
Date: October 25, 2006
Ponente: Justice Antonio Carpio
Petitioners: Raul L. Lambino, et.al
Respondent: COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS
FACTS
Lambino et al filed a petition with the COMELEC on August 25, 2006, to hold a plebiscite that
will ratify their initiative petition to change the 1987 Constitution under Section 5(b) and (c) and
Section 73 of Republic Act No. 6735 or the Initiative and Referendum Act.
The petitioners gathered signatures for an initiative petition to change the 1987 Constitution.
The proposed changes under the initiative petition modifies Article VI (Legislative Department),
Article VII (Executive Department) and addition of Article XVIII entitled “Transitory Provisions.”
which will shift the present Bicameral-Presidential system to a Unicameral-Parliamentary form
of government.
The Lambino Group alleged that the 6.3 Million signatures gathered constituted at least 12
percent of all registered voters, with each legislative district represented by at least 3percent of
its registered voters.
The petitioners also claimed that COMELEC election registrars had verified the signatures of
the 6.3 million individuals.
On August 30, 2006, the Lambino Group filed an Amended Petition with the COMELEC
indicating modifications in the proposed Article XVIII (Transitory Provisions) of their initiative.
The COMELEC denied the Lambino petition and invoked the ruling in Santiago v. Comelec
declaring RA 6735 inadequate to implement the initiative clause on proposals to amend the
Constitution.
ISSUES
WON the petitioners comply on Amendments through people’s initiative;
WON this Court should revisit its ruling in Santiago v COMELEC.
RULING
The Lambino Group's initiative is void and unconstitutional because it does not comply with the
requirement of Section 2, Article XVII of the Constitution that the initiative must be " directly
proposed by the people through initiative upon a petition."
Section 2, Article XVII of the Constitution is the governing constitutional provision that allows a
people's initiative to propose amendments to the Constitution. It states:
Sec 2. Amendments to this Constitution may likewise be directly proposed by the people
through initiative 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.
The petitioners failed to show the court that the initiative signer must be informed at the time of
the signing of the nature and effect, failure to do so is “deceptive and misleading” which
renders the initiative void. The Lambino Group merely submitted a copy of the signature sheet.
