Marcos floats 2025 date for controversial Philippine referendum

Protesters against the plan by some lawmakers to change parts of the Philippine constitution shout slogans outside the Manila Cathedral on Feb 22, 2024.- AP

MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said a referendum to amend the constitution may be held along with the midterm elections next year, advancing his plan to revise the charter that has sparked a bitter dispute between the country’s most powerful politicians.

Conducting the two polls separately would be costly, Marcos told reporters in Manila on Wednesday (Feb 28) before he departed for an official visit to Australia.