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CDP’S INTERNAL DEMOCRACY: DISTRICT CENTERED POLITICAL PARTY | Roderico Y. Dumaug, Jr. of 8 pages

CDP’S INTERNAL DEMOCRACY: DISTRICT CENTERED POLITICAL PARTY

By: Roderico Y. Dumaug, Jr.

Former Founding President, Centrist Democratic Movement Federation of the Philippines Former Regional Chairperson, Centrist Democratic Party Northern Mindanao

District Chairperson, District of Iligan

Speech Delivered 1st National Party Congress of the Centrist Democratic Party of the Philippines

March 25, 2012, Ayala Hall, Makati Sports Club “Presentation of the CDP Statute”

Mr. President, Members of the National Council, Members of the National

Congress,

Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, Good Afternoon.

As what one of our CDP Members in Cebu said that one of the sources of

our inspiration is the failure of our democracy in protecting the dignity of every

Filipino, like the deficits in our Governance, Transparency, Accountability and

the deficits in our Predictability. For more than 500 years since the time we were

colonized until today our country, our highly centralized government is depriving

the various peoples from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao a true and equal

representation in government, and it failed to build a nation that should have

enjoyed the fruits of our democracy. These have deepened the suffering of the

Filipinos from this seemingly unsolvable poverty, the domination of the oligarchic

elite and the never-ending insurgency in the provinces and the rebellion in

Mindanao.


We must commit ourselves to restore the human dignity of every Filipino,

fight poverty, level the playing field, protect our environment for our future

generation, for responsible media, build a truly Federal Republic to end

insurgency and rebellion, establish a parliamentary form of government and an

institutionalized political party system.

Our party President Sir Lito Monico Lorenzana, who inspires us, once said

that as party members we have “to assume and share the responsibilities for

ourselves and for our fellow citizens, and initiate changes in the political

firmament to bring about good governance and eventually progress in our

county.”

Party members, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am proud to present to you our

statute which is the product of our passion and commitment.

Last week, March 18, 2012, during our First National Council Meeting here

in Manila, this statute is approved and let me briefly present to you some salient

features of our statute especially those that will make us truly different from other

political parties of this country.

The Preamble declares our commitment to establish a functioning

democracy in our country and for every Filipino to live in dignity. This declaration

also includes our belief on the rule of law, the solidarity of the Filipinos and on

subsidiarity in the Philippines to ensure a dignified existence of the Filipinos.


Article 1 sets the official name which is the Centrist Democratic Party of

the Philippines and our mission is basically to contribute centrist policies in our

country for the protection of the Filipino dignity and by especially mentioning

the Social Market Economy as our primary socio-economic-political program

and the creation of a Federal Philippines.

In Article 2 we will probably find the most radical proclamation and firm

stand of our political party that we should publicly support. In reforming our

democratic system, we are aiming for a Parliamentary form of Philippine

Government. To institute Political Reforms, we are aiming for the

institutionalization of our political party system through a member-based and

program oriented political parties. In reforming our socio-economic system, we

are aiming to establish a Philippine Social Market Economy. And in reforming the

structures of our State to ensure a strong representative form of governance, we

are aiming for a decentralized system following the principles of subsidiarity and

the ultimate creation of a Federal Philippines.

Article 3 outlines our various political activities being a member based

and program oriented political party and we have to engage ourselves in the

local and regional level by initiating projects that will improve the living situation

of the citizens and to solve problems in our localities. We can do this

engagement with our alliances on sector associations and civil societies.


Article 4 provides for the essential procedures in accepting and sustaining

committed and passionate centrist members in our party. Membership is open

only to individuals who have undergone an orientation, qualified to vote and be

voted upon in any election in the country and whose application are subject to

approval by his provincial or city council.

Ours is a people’s party as we are open to all sectors of Philippine society

united in our core values and beliefs and working to build a more humane

future for all the Filipinos. This is what Article 5 of our statute generally speaks

about. This article also provides for our cooperation with the various sectors like

the farmers and the fisher folks, the labor, the urban poor, the youth, the senior

citizens, the indigenous peoples and the women and the organization of the

Centrist Democratic Sector Organizations within our party which is parallel to our

own structure and is an independent legal entity.

Article 6 clearly defines the basic structure of the National bodies in our

party which is composed of the (a) The National Congress, (b) The National

Council, (c) The Executive Board of the National Council, (d) The National

Secretariat, (e) The National Thematic Commissions and the (f) The Board of

Senior Advisors. We must always remember that all regional delegates and

representatives to the National Congress and the National Executive Council

must be duly elected and approved by their respective Regional Assembly to

ensure that we are a membership based political party strictly adhering to our


internal democracy and proportional principles. Like for example this 1st National

Congress of the CDP, all of us here are duly elected delegates from the

Provincial/City Assemblies and later on are elected delegates from the Regional

Assembly.

Article 7 sets the organizational structures of the CDP in our Region,

Province and in the City following the principles of transparency, subsidiarity,

internal democracy and cohesiveness. Members of this National Congress, we

must give importance and significance to our Provincial and City organizations

especially to our local assemblies because it is where our dues-paying members

and our volunteers actually engaging politically through our programs and

activities and in translating our centrist principles in our localities. No national

officers or delegates can join this congress or the national council without first

being elected in their own Provincial and City Assemblies and later on in their

Regional Assemblies. This is what we mean by subsidiarity and this is what we

mean real representative form of governance absent in other political parties in

the Philippines and none in our Philippine Government. In order for us to

become relevant to our members and will make us truly different, we must

strictly adhere to this basic principle of what a membership based political party

is.

Article 8 cites the involvement of major public office holders within our

political party. As membership based party, we welcome everyone who is


centrists or who commit themselves to our centrist principles and this includes

public officials.

Article 9 on Finances is very important to us for aside from the fact that it

deals with our sustainability and survival as a party it also provides an important

principle unique only to us. We are independent from the benevolence or

generosity of one single person or of the elite or of a rich businessman or

oligarch. We must pay our due and remit our share to the national offices. By

the time we stop paying and stop remitting, it is the time that we give room to

the oligarchs and rich people to single handedly control our party and influence

our political activities. As members of this Congress, we must imbue this

particular value of paying our dues to protect our party from the control of the

few.

Article 10 provides for the dissolution of any bodies in the party. Although

this is not what we want to happen soon but of course there’s a need for it to be

regulated. Article 11 details the suspension or removal of our officers. Article 12

provides for the arbitration on conflicts between individual party members and

party bodies, and Article 13 enshrines the procedure on how are we going to

amend or revise our constitution and by-laws.

Lastly in Article 14, we have the Transitory Provisions on the first

membership and the organization of the founding bodies of our party. We

already have our founding coordinators, the founding national council officers


and today you are witnessing the convening of the founding national congress

of our political party.

Our Party President, Sir Lito Monico Lorenzana, dear officers of the

National Executive Council and delegates from the various regions, members of

this National Congress,

Even in very difficult circumstances in building a real political party in the

Philippines having the traditional and oligarch dominated political party system

existing today, I honor all of you for coming today. I honor you for despite our

limited resources and political influence, you remain committed and dedicated

in joining us in our struggle to make Philippine Democracy functional. I honor all

of you for despite pressures from our works and careers, we remain to be

members or committed to the centrist ideologies and values that are dear to us

which we believe will bring greatness to our country. I honor also our friends and

party comrades who are not here today although they cannot come or are

prevented to come because of their affiliation to CDP, they are part of the

making of the success of our party and I know that their hearts and minds are

with us today.

I honor the Regional Assembly of Manila for their solidarity with other

regions and in believing that through our political party we can build a Federal

Government which truly empowers the Regions and in believing that progress

means that no region, no province shall be left behind.


Lastly, this 1st National Congress is not about giving some instructions, nor

about establishing an exclusive club of elite or oligarchs. This is about coming

together, joining hands to transform this country. Therefore, I would like to invite

all of you to support and put into our hearts this Constitution and By-Laws of our

party.

I am a Centrist. I value the human dignity of mankind. I am a Nation-

Builder and I am a Filipino.

Thank you very much and good afternoon.

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