A bill seeking to amend the nearly 30-year-old Party-List System Act has gained support from the country’s poll body.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said it welcomes Senate Bill No. 192, which aims to realign Republic Act No. 7941 with the 1987 Constitution’s intent of giving voice to underrepresented groups.

“This clarification and change are timely and long been awaited. We strongly support this bill. We have prepared recommendations [and] we are ready to assist and provide inputs if our expertise is asked,” Comelec chairperson George Garcia said.

According to Sen. Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, who filed the bill on August 31, the law’s interpretation has drifted from its original mandate.

“Through the years, the interpretation of the law on party-list has expanded its qualification and has deviated from the intent of the framers of the 1987 Constitution, which is to truly represent the marginalized and the underrepresented,” the senator said.

The proposed amendments would allow the cancellation of party-list registration for groups that fail to represent marginalized sectors, nominate ineligible individuals, engage in acts against government interest, lose their marginalized status, or misrepresent their nominees’ qualifications.

The bill’s proponent said the reforms are meant to curb misuse of the system, noting that “the party-list system has also been abused and used as a vehicle to pursue advocacies that are not for the best interest of the government.”

During a recent House hearing, Garcia told lawmakers that outdated election laws—including the Omnibus Election Code, the Fair Elections Act, the Automated Election Law, and the Party-List Law—have hampered the Comelec’s authority to address overspending and abuses. 

Garcia said the commission has prepared a draft revised Omnibus Election Code, which it hopes Congress will act on.

“Amid the many issues hounding government officials, it is high time to revisit the true purpose of the party-list system, whether these groups are genuinely representing the marginalized, or merely hiding behind the guise of doing so for personal or political gain,” Sotto added, emphasizing that restoring the system’s integrity is essential to prevent further inequality.

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