Former president and new House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo waves during the third session of the 17th Congress ahead of President Rodrigo Duterte's state of the nation address on July 23, 2018. Noel Celis, AFP/file

MANILA -- A House of Representatives committee has endorsed to the chamber's plenary a draft constitution filed by Speaker Gloria Arroyo and other lawmakers, which seeks to pave the way for the creation of a federal government.

The House Committee on Constitutional Amendments, in a report dated October 2, said the panel considered the proposed measure and recommended its approval without amendments.

The proposal is separate from the draft federal charter of President Rodrigo Duterte's consultative committee, said Leyte Rep. Vicente Veloso, who is among its proponents.

The proposal, among others, keeps a presidential form of government while empowering Congress to create federal states.

It also keeps the Senate as a body where members are elected at large, instead of by region.

The document as published on the House of Representatives website is attached below.

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The measure was filed in September by Arroyo, House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya and Constitutional Amendments Committee chair Veloso, among others.

EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story was based on an initial draft of the committee report that was mistaken for the approved version. We apologize to the House and the public.