Once again, we've got another Senate investigation, this time involving the Presidential Commission on Good Government and allegations that they have been mismanaging the affairs of the Philippine Communications Satellite Corp. or Philcomsat.  Poor PCGG chairman Camilo Sabio is caught in the center, invoking an Executive Order issued during the time of Cory Aquino in refusing to attend Senate's summons to attend the Philcomsat hearings.

If you look at Sabio, he's a mild mannered, soft-spoken man who simply believes he is doing his job.  Malacañang, of course, said it will back up Sabio, so another wrangling between the Senate and the Palace is anticipated.  Looks like this is one of those episodes that would probably end up nowhere, with the so many Senate investigations that have been conducted over the past couple of years.  Of course, everyone knows that the family of Senator Juan Ponce Enrile has a minority stake at the government sequestered company, Philcomsat.

But this latest episode only underscores how the present system, with the separation of powers between the three branches of government, is failing this country.  This separation of powers between the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial departments is intended to prevent abuses and is based on the theory of checks and balances.  From the looks of things, there are more "checks" than "balances."

As head of the Executive branch, the president has control over all executive departments, bureaus and offices.  On the other hand, the Constitution allows the Legislative branch to conduct inquiries.  All appropriations bills must originate in the House, but the president is given a line-item veto.  On the other hand, Congress can override a presidential veto through a two-thirds vote.  As for the Supreme Court, it can rule on questions regarding the Constitutionality of Presidential Decrees, Proclamations or Executive Orders.

As it is, all the senators feel they are a power by themselves, a king of their own kingdom, all 23 of them flexing their muscles through their conduct of hearings and investigations with Malacañang, obviously, one of their favorite subjects of investigation.  Meantime, the Supreme Court is already saddled with all the cases it has to decide on without these additional disputes adding to their load.

No doubt, this whole thing is turning out to be a circus.  Just look at the example of Sabio getting detained at the Senate, when in fact it is Malacañang that should have jurisdiction considering that Sabio is under the Executive department.  Where have all the gridlocks brought this country?  Nowhere.  That's why a lot of people are frustrated, and many are leaving for greener pastures abroad.

Out of 2,240 bills filed, only 16 had been passed by the Senate, with only nine of them eventually passed into law.  In the last two years, only six out of 20 measures certified as urgent by the president were passed.  While the Lower House had passed and transmitted 750 bills to the Senate, with 50 of those bills of national importance, the political gridlock had doomed a lot of these proposed legislations that have been extensively debated in the House of Representatives.

Even Ed Angara himself had admitted that the present Congress has been the least productive in the last 20 years, blaming the constant bickering between Malacañang and the Senate for the unimpressive record.  Meanwhile, key bills affecting the country's economy and security like the New Anti-Smuggling Act and the Anti-Terrorism Bill continue to languish in the cellar.  If, despite all these things, people still don't realize that there is something terribly wrong with the present system, then I don't know what else could convince them.

Charter change seems to be a viable way out of this circuitous setup.  We need a system that really works best for this country with its unique Filipino cultural and psychological makeup.  Understandably, a lot of people are still skeptical about Charter change. There are some who argue that it's not the system that is at fault here, but the people.  Actually, it's really both, because a system that works can change the people.

Even the Opposition knows that Charter change is necessary.  While they have been rabidly anti-Cha-cha before, lately they have been changing their tune.  "Crying lady" Dinky Doo (or Dinky Don't) and her group essentially believe there is a need to amend the Constitution, though it should be done through a Constitutional Convention and only after GMA is out of office.  In reality, all they want is to get GMA out of Malacañang.

By the end of this year, there will be close to 86 million Filipinos, and by 2014, we will have a population of more than 100 million, making it harder for whoever will be president at that time, perhaps having to deal with more poverty and more crime.  There will probably be less money for health, for education and other basic services, and most likely, we'll have a bigger debt to service.  It's really a catch-up situation, where limited government resources will forever be trying to catch up with the demands of a rapidly growing population.

The good thing that is happening for the moment is the economy seems to be pretty stable.  The peso's performance has been quite strong at P50-P51 to the dollar, a far cry from the P55-P56 levels last year.  There's been a 5.5 percent growth in our GDP, and government debt went down by 0.5 percent as of June.  The BIR exceeded its target collection for August, and that means more money for crucial infrastructure programs.

OFW remittances this year are expected to reach as much as $13 billion dollars.  In spite of all the fiascos, there seems to be a strong inflow of investments.  Even the International Labor Organization (ILO) found something good, lauding the country's promotion of a "Decent Work Program" and urging other countries to take a leaf from the Philippines.  There are a few positive things happening in the country, but in the end, all are swallowed up by so many negative controversial issues.

Somehow, it seems luck has been with us so far.  But all this luck may run out one day.  It's time we prepared ourselves for a more open economic system and a more dynamic political system.  Whenever we ask ourselves—why are the other Asian countries more progressive than we are?  Perhaps the answer could lie on the present system we're in today.  I have no doubt Filipinos are a great people.  Whenever and wherever they are given a chance to be in a system that works, more often than not, they thrive and prosper.

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