ILOILO CITY - Local executives in Panay Island are supporting the signature campaign to amend the Constitution to be held in today's barangay assemblies.

Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas said the League of Cities of the Philippines of which he is president is at the forefront of the campaign. "We fully support the (people's initiative) and we are encouraging all officials to do the same," Treñas said in a telephone interview. He said at least 80 percent of the 117-member LCP are backing the move.

Aklan Gov. Carlito Marquez said Aklan officials are also supporting the moves to amend the Constitution. He said the charter changes will "hasten economic development."

He said the officials of the province are preparing for the assemblies and the signature campaign in the 327 barangays of the province's 17 municipalities.

The signature campaign will also be held in Antique province, Antique Gov. Salvacion Zaldivar-Perez said.

Perez, a close ally of President Macapagal-Arroyo, said mayors and village chiefs are already prepared for the assemblies.

"The preparations are smooth sailing and we are confident that we can reach or even surpassed the required signatures of at least 12 percent of the total number of registered voters and at least 3 percent of every congressional district's registered voters in our area," Perez, who is the chairperson of the Regional Development Council in Western Visayas, said.

Guimaras Gov. Rahman Nava, however, said he is still consulting with officials of the province whether they will or not support the signature campaign.

Iloilo Gov. Niel Tupas Sr. who is allied with Senate President Franklin Drilon, said the people's initiative is against the Constitution because there is still no enabling law on the conduct of the measure.

"It's (House Speaker Jose ) De Venecia express. He is in a hurry to become Prime Minister," Tupas said.

Tupas said the moves to amend the Constitution are meant to "divert the attention of the people" from the controversy surrounding the Arroyo administration. "But as long as she is there, the questions will remain."

Civil society and militant groups also condemned the signature campaign.

In a press conference here yesterday, groups under the Iloilo Multisectoral Group Against People's Initiative of GMA (PIG), said the signature campaign in today's barangay assemblies is making a "mockery" of the Constitutional provision on amending to the charter.

The groups said the planned amendments are meant to prolong the President's stay in office and to remove the "remaining nationalist provisions in the Constitution."

The groups include the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Western Visayas Network of Non-Government Organizations, Sanlakas, Freedom from Debt Coalition, and the Citizen's Movement for Federal Philippines.*

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