On the third and final reading, the House of Representatives approved Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6, which calls for a hybrid constitutional convention (con-con) to propose amendments to the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.

The chamber passed House Bill (HB) 7352, the accompanying bill to RBH 6, on the third reading with 301 affirmative votes, seven negative votes, and no abstentions.

The bill's author, House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, stated that the House constitutional reform initiative aims to rewrite the Constitution's "restrictive" economic provisions in order to attract more foreign investment.

He stated that relaxing the charter's economic provisions would improve the country's an investment and economic space.

The bill proposes a seven-month term for the convention, beginning December 1, 2023, and ending June 30, 2024.

Charter amendments endorsed by the proposed convention shall be submitted to the people for ratification in a plebiscite to be held not sooner than 60 days nor later than 90 days after the convention report is submitted to the President and Congress.

The proposed convention will be made up of elected delegates, one from each legislative district, and will be voted on October 30, 2023.

Three retired members of the judiciary, three from academia, three from the legal profession, two economists, and two each from business, labor, the urban poor, farmers and fishermen, indigenous cultural communities, women, youth, veterans, cooperatives, senior citizens, and persons with disabilities, as well as such other sectors as the Senate President and House Speaker may determine.

The Senate President and House Speaker must appoint the appointive members within 15 days of the convention's start date.

A delegate must be at least 25 years old on the day of the election or appointment, have a college degree, be a registered voter in the district in which the delegate is elected, and have lived in the district for at least one year immediately preceding the day of the election.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is responsible for developing and implementing rules and regulations for the election of Con-Con members.

Officers and members of all political parties or coalitions are not permitted to nominate, field, endorse, support, or campaign for any candidate for CON-CON delegate.

No aspirant shall represent or permit himself or herself to be represented as a candidate of a political party or coalition.

Any person holding public office, including members of the armed forces, is considered to have resigned when his certificate of candidacy for con-con delegate is filed.

Any person elected or appointed to the convention shall be ineligible to run in the first local or national elections held after the proposed amendments are ratified or to be appointed to any government position while the convention is in session and within one year of its adjournment.

A convention delegate has the same parliamentary immunity as a member of Congress.

The Senate, House, and other government agencies must make personnel, facilities, equipment, or office space available to the convention without interfering with public service.

The Con-Con must submit its report to the President, Congress, and Comelec within 30 days of the proposed amendments being completed, or by June 30, 2024.

Meanwhile, the convention's funding will be charged against any available appropriations in the 2023 national budget before being included in the budget proposal for the following year.