ONE of Speaker Martin Romualdez’s most trusted lieutenants yesterday said there will be no leadership change in the House of Representatives even if a group of lawmakers are allegedly plotting to replace him in the face of the allegation of contractors Cezarah Rowena “Sarah” Discaya and her husband, Pacifico “Curlee” II, that 17 congressmen are involved in the flood control fund scandal.
Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega made the statement amid Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco’s claim that some of his colleagues have been discussing if they can muster enough numbers to pull a coup and replace Romualdez.
“There is no change of leadership,” Ortega told reporters after uploading on Facebook a photo of the meeting of party leaders with the Speaker, which was also attended by his nephew, presidential son Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos, who was earlier rumored to be a possible replacement of his uncle.
“I think the photo will speak for itself na kitang-kita namang nagkakaisa po ang House of Representatives at saka ang mga party leaders (I think the photo will speak for itself, it’s very evident that the House of Representatives is united, along with its party leaders),” he added.
Ortega, however, said Deputy Speaker Ronaldo Puno, who chairs the National Unity Party (NUP), was not in the meeting.
A rift between the Cabinet and House party leaders led by Puno started last week after the lawmakers blamed the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and other departments for the alleged insertions and errors in the National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2026, saying it was unfair that only congressmen have always been blamed for it when there are insertions made at the level of the Executive branch, a co-equal branch of the Legislative.
Puno’s group wanted the NEP returned to the Palace but the Speaker advised them to allow the House Committee on Appropriations to correct the errors during the ongoing budget hearings.
Tiangco said disgruntled lawmakers want the Speaker to be ousted but they do not want Bacolod City Rep. Alfredo “Albee” Benitez to be the replacement because “I heard Martin will give way to someone that he’s comfortable with.”
“Ako kay Albee ako (I’m for Albee), that’s why I’m this vocal,” Tiangco said.
Reacting to the supposed plot to remove Romualdez, Ortega said: “Well, maraming tsismis pero sabi ko nga, tsismis. Mga bulong-bulong (there are rumors but as I said, it’s just rumors. Pero (But) as you can see, the House is one, the House is solid, and there’s no change in the leadership).”
Ortega also laughed off the supposed signature-gathering campaign in support of a new House leader, saying he heard from the grapevine that some lawmakers are calling colleagues to ask them to join them.
“May tumatawag sa ibang members. Pero hindi rin nagpapakilala (There’s someone calling other members but he did not introduce himself),” he said. “This appears to have started at the start of the 20th Congress. Same sentiments. Well, most of them were using the name of the bosses, their using others people’s names. But as I said, it’s hard to believe hearsay,” he added in mixed Filipino and English.
Also yesterday, Cavite Rep. Francisco Barzaga left the majority bloc and his party, the NUP, after Puno allegedly accused him of collecting signatures to oust Romualdez.
In a Facebook post, Barzaga said he was informed on Wednesday night that Puno “implicated me in a plot to remove Speaker Romualdez from his position, and that I am collecting signatures to do so.”
“That notion is false,” he said.
Barzaga, who will join the minority bloc, said his statement during their party meeting earlier this week about the House leader’s word ward with the Cabinet was misinterpreted by Puno.
“The intent of my message was that he (Puno) should resign if his removal (as deputy speaker) was inevitable (in the event of a leadership change) and that the reputation of the lower house as a whole is not one that he is capable of defending, nor is it in his best interest to do so. I did not state anything negative about his performance or the performance of the House,” he said.
Barzaga said that while the “betrayal of trust is disappointing, I believe it is in the best interests of both myself and the National Unity Party that we go our separate ways. I will also be leaving the majority since I voted for Speaker Romualdez due to my party’s instructions.”
“I supported Speaker Romualdez due to this, though now that I am free from my party’s constraints, I suggest that he must be investigated for any anomalies involving flood control public funds. Specifically during the time when he was given the caretaker position of my district upon my father’s death on April 27, 2024,” he said.
