The public should trust President Rodrigo Duterte and Congress to do the right thing in shifting to a federal form of government through a constituent assembly, House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has said. Alvarez made this point in a televised debate with Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, who has opposed the shift to federalism and the administration’s proposed mode of Con-ass. I also trust the President who got a huge mandate from the people,” Alvarez said. Lagman for his part said he was wary of Alvarez treating federalism as a sort of panacea to corruption, drugs, and poverty. Another example was merging Caraga region—Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur—with Davao.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer August 16, 2016 17:48 UTC