Manila - Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on Friday pushed for amendments to the country's constitution in a bid to boost the local economy amid the financial meltdown in the United States. While assuring the business community that the Philippine economy was in "relatively good shape" despite the global crisis, Arroyo said some economic provisions in the 1987 constitution needed to be revised to further boost the country's competitiveness.
"We have done all the liberalization we can do within the law, so now the next liberalization has to be done through the constitution," she told a forum with local and foreign businessmen in Manila. "There are now initiatives in Congress to liberalize the economic provisions."
The constitution bans foreigners from owning land in the Philippines and limits their stake in corporations to 40 per cent - restrictions that some economists have blamed for blocking the entry of more investments in the country.
Several proposals to change these provisions have been filed in Congress, but deliberations have been hampered by opposition from lawmakers and groups worried that any moves to amend the constitution would lead to an extension of Arroyo's term.
