MANILA- The government has allocated P100 million in public funds to support an office dedicated solely to promoting federalism.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) recently opened an office called the "Center for Federalism and Constitutional Reform (CFCR)" to oversee and spearhead the nationwide public information and education drive on federalism.

"We were given [a] P100 million budget for 2018 to push for federalism and educate the public about it," DILG Assistant Secretary Epimaco Densing III said on Tuesday.

Ronald Holmes, president of polling body Pulse Asia, said only a small percentage of Filipinos are knowledgeable on the Constitution and changes on the charter appear to be absent from the public's major concerns.

"There is no clamor, the urgency of change in constitution is something were not getting in public opinion polls," Holmes said.

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Changing the country's form of government from a unitary system to a federal one is part of President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign promises.

Lawmakers in the Senate and the House of Representatives have begun discussions on proposals to amend the 1987 Constitution to give way to the shift to federalism.

The CFCR is tasked to gather public opinion on federalism and gain public trust on the government's push to shift to a federal form of government.

It shall be run by some 50 people, most of whom are from the regions.