House exec defends Speaker; Senators launch own drive vs PI
The veneer of parliamentary courtesy between the Senate and the House of Representatives continues to wear thin as members of the two chambers exchange harsh words over Charter change (Cha-cha).
“At a time when our nation beckons for unity and cooperative governance, it is immensely troubling to witness a select group of senators engaging in baseless attacks against the Speaker and our esteemed colleagues in the House of Representatives,” House Majority Leader Manuel Dalipe said on Saturday, without identifying the senators.
A day earlier, his Senate counterpart, Majority Leader Joel Villanueva, said a proposal by Speaker Martin Romualdez that senators launch an “alternative people’s initiative” (PI) to amend the 1987 Constitution with House backing was an “insult” to the Senate.
Passionate, angered
“This is the very reason why we are so passionate and angered by this ‘fake initiative.’ It’s an affront to your person, intelligence and capabilities,” Villanueva said.
Villanueva was referring to a campaign backed by the House to gather signatures for a petition for a people’s initiative to amend the Constitution to make all the senators and congressman vote jointly in a constitutional assembly on any future amendments to the Charter.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri rejected the proposal submitted by Romualdez in a letter to him on Thursday.
On Friday Senator Imee Marcos alleged that the Speaker, her cousin, offered P20 million per district to encourage House members to collect signatures for a proposed amendment to the 1987 Constitution.
‘Maritess’
This was flatly denied by Romualdez, calling the allegation “quite baseless,” chiding Marcos for believing in “maritess” or gossip.
Dalipe was outraged that the Speaker’s letter to Zubiri “was met not with reciprocation but with betrayal, as certain senators opted to wield their words like daggers, aiming at the very heart of legislative camaraderie.”
“Respect begets respect. By undermining the House, the Senate not only sows discord within the halls of Congress but also risks alienating the representatives of more than 300 legislative districts, potentially losing their respect and cooperation, essential for any legislative body to function effectively,” Dalipe added.
Nevertheless, the House majority leader appealed to fellow lawmakers to “rise above petty politics” and “realign our focus towards the monumental task of constitutional reform, in the spirit of cooperation and for the greater good of our country.”Senators’ campaign
“This unnecessary rift hampers our collective ability to address the pressing issues facing our nation – from economic recovery and infrastructure development to healthcare and education,” he said.
On Saturday, several senators kicked off their own campaign against the “fake people’s initiative.”.
Villanueva and three other senators attended the “Prayer and Vision Casting 2024” event of the Jesus Is Lord (JIL) Church, the homegrown Christian church founded by his father, Cibac party list Rep. Eddie Villanueva.
In an impassioned speech, Villanueva told the crowd of about 7,000 JIL members that he and his fellow senators were not just after self-preservation.
“My colleagues and I are here to report what’s really happening,” Villanueva said. “It is very obvious that the House, led by their Speaker, is very determined to have Charter change (Cha-cha).”
“There will be no more elections. No one will be able to challenge them because the checks and balances [in the government] will be gone … They want to act like gods,” he said.
The annual gathering in Norzagaray town, Bulacan province, was held two days after Romualdez sent a letter to Zubiri.
Imee’s prayer
Marcos, who attended the JIL event along with Senators Grace Poe and Pia Cayetano, offered a prayer for President Marcos, her younger brother.
Her brother, she said, should be reminded of the dreams that their father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, had for the country and for him to be guided by the “history that molded our family.”
“May You touch the heart of my brother, the President of the Philippines. Open his eyes and give him a clear mind,” Marcos said in her prayer.
She prayed that her fellow senators remain strong in defending “our institution, the Constitution and the people’s mandate” and for protection for Vice President Sara Duterte.
The House, Marcos said, should remember that the trust that the Filipinos gave them was “sacred” and that the votes they secured as elected officials were a product of the country’s freedom and democracy.
Meanwhile, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada went live on Facebook to discuss the issues surrounding the petition for a PI to amend the Constitution, saying that the change being proposed would abolish Senate as it will constitutionally mandate a joint vote by the 24 senators and the 310 House members in rewriting the Charter.
“We don’t need a problem like this for our country. We have to be united in solving our problems,” he said in an interview with dwIZ radio earlier
Bishops dared
Sen. Ronald dela Rosa said he would also lead a similar campaign in his home province of Davao del Sur.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said they were already reaching out to their constituents in Valenzuela City who may have been duped into signing the petition for the PI in exchange for government financial aid.
In Negros Occidental province, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson challenged people who alleged that government assistance was used as leverage to gather signatures to the PI petition to prove their claim.
He specifically pointed to three bishops—Patricio Buzon of Bacolod, Louie Galbines of Kabankalan and Gerardo Alminaza of San Carlos—who said in a joint statement on Thursday, that there were reports that government social assistance was being used to encourage support for the PI.
Free to withdraw
“That is something that they have to prove. If they have strong evidence to prove that, then they can present that to the Comelec (Commission on Elections),” Lacson said on Friday.Lacson said he would like to hear the position of the Church on whether there was a need to amend the economic provisions of the Constitution to improve the economy.
He said those who wanted to withdraw their signatures from the petition were free to do so.
In their statement, the three bishops said “unethical practices” to back the PI petition were “not only morally reprehensible but also erode the integrity of our democratic institutions.”
“The Church categorically condemns such practices and calls for integrity in all civic engagements,” they said. —WITH A REPORT FROM CARLA GOMEZ
