CLEAR-CUT PARTY SYSTEM TO STRENGTHEN DEMOCRACY

In light of the upcoming 2013 midterm elections, Senator Edgardo J. Angara urged national and local leaders to strengthen the party system of the political parties they belong to in order to promote a mature democracy.

He added that this is aligned with the good governance thrust of the administration.

"I think part of the problem of our slow national development is our weak party system," Angara said during the National Executive Meeting of the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP).

"We act and exercise our democratic rights and privileges through our representatives. Without a clear-cut party system, our parties lack solid platform and ideology thus, weakening our democracy."

The veteran senator authored the Political Party Development Act (Senate Bill No. 3214), which has been pending for three Congresses, in an effort to institutionalize a strong party system in the country.

Once passed, the measure will prohibit political turncoats from running for any position in the following elections, and will disqualify them from appointment to any public office for three years after the expiration of their term.

"Political parties and candidates should grow together in terms of crafting a vision and building a platform. A candidate should have conviction because that will reflect on how they will lead once elected. Disciplined and loyal candidates are the mark of a mature democracy," Angara said.

SBN 3214 also seeks to promote transparency in campaign financing by establishing a party development fund which will supplement the operating funds of accredited political parties.

The bill provides that political parties will be accredited based on the following criteria: political representation, organizational strength and mobilization capability, and performance and track record of the party.

"I hope the new generation of national leaders and even the local leaders will now begin to realize that part of our boom-and-bust development is the weakness of our party system," he stressed.

Angara, LDP's chairman and president, also said in the executive meeting that their party will likely enter into a coalition with the Liberal Party prior to next year's elections.