Federalism: a change from bad to worse

RECENT NEWS reports clearly indicate that President Duterte is determined to plunge headlong into federalism.

I am sure that he has the best of intentions. The present hellish state of our government calls for drastic change. But we better be sure that federalism is the cure for all the problems bedeviling our government.

That federalism seems to work well in some countries that are models of good governance—notably, the United States, Canada, Germany and Switzerland—is no guarantee that it is the answer to our problems.  Before undertaking such a radical shift, an in-depth study of how we can adapt federalism to the Philippine setting—given our culture and the festering problems of corruption, dynasty, criminality, nonobedience to laws, nonpayment of taxes, etc. that have been bedeviling us—is imperative.

Without such an in-depth study showing that federalism in the Philippine context would work, it would be sheer folly to proceed with it. A Constitution formulated by a constitutional convention, within the limited time allotted to it, would at best be based on a perfunctory study of the system of federalism.

If the traditional system of federalism is followed, with the individual states being sovereign (note the word “sovereign”) and the federal government devoid of the power to interfere in the local affairs of the states, I envision, with great concern, this most likely result: governors of the sovereign states, left to their own devices and free from any interference by the federal government, governing their states like their own personal fiefdoms. I say this given the typical penchant of our politicians for enriching themselves in office and perpetuating themselves in power through the dynasty system. So, instead of a change for the better, a shift to federalism would be a change from bad to worse.

—ROGELIO A. VINLUAN, [email protected]