THE House of Representatives yesterday opened the Second Regular Session of the 19th Congress without any political fireworks, with Speaker Martin Romualdez retaining his hold to the top leadership amid allegations that Deputy Speaker Gloria Arroyo was plotting to oust him.
Romualdez, a first cousin of President Marcos Jr., presided over the opening session day which was attended by 311 lawmakers, including Arroyo, a former president who also became speaker in the 18th Congress during the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Upon the opening of session, the House adopted House Resolution Nos. 122 and 123 informing the Senate and President Marcos Jr., respectively, that it has “entered upon the exercise of its functions.”
The House also adopted Concurrent Resolution No. 15 providing for the House and the Senate “to hold a joint session to hear the message of the President of the Republic of the Philippines” in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) at 4:00 p.m. yesterday.
Arroyo, chairman emeritus of the ruling Lakas-CMD, was earlier stripped of the title of senior deputy speaker for allegedly attempting to oust Romualdez, the party’s president.
In the 18th Congress, Arroyo managed to pull off a coup against then-Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez with the help of now Vice President Sara Duterte, who was Davao City mayor at the time.
The former president had earlier denied that she was plotting to remove Romualdez who said last May that the “occasional moves to destabilize the House should be nipped in the bud.”
Vice President Duterte later has resigned from the Lakas-CMD and has been making derogatory remarks believed to be aimed at Romualdez, who decided to keep mum in the face of what his allies said were “attacks.”
HOUSE PRIORITIES
In his opening remarks, Romualdez vowed to prioritize the approval of the remaining urgent measures identified by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).
He identified the 20 measures as the following: proposed amendments to the BOT law or the Public-Private Partnership bill, the National Disease Prevention Management Authority, the Internet Transactions Act or E-Commerce law, the Health Emergency Auxiliary Reinforcement Team Act or formerly the Medical Reserve Corps, the Virology Institute of the Philippines, revival of the mandatory ROTC and National Service Training Program, measure seeking to revitalize the salt industry, proposed reforms to the valuation system, E-Government and E-Governance bills, proposed Ease of Paying Taxes Equally, the National Government Rightsizing program, the Unified System of Separation/Retirement and Pension of Military and Other Uniformed Personnel, the LGU Income Classification bill, the waste-to-energy bill, the proposed New Philippine Passport Act, the Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers, the National Employment Action Plan, proposed amendments to the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act, the Bank Deposit Secrecy Act, and the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act.
“We face the remaining bills in the LEDAC priority list with enthusiasm and optimism, steadfast in our determination to transform these initiatives into concrete laws for the benefit of our fellow Filipinos,” Romualdez said.
The Speaker also vowed to look into the problems of the agriculture sector to help millions of Filipino farmers and fishermen.
“It is equally imperative to address the issues confronting our agricultural sector in the soonest possible time. We will redouble our efforts to stop the smuggling of rice, sugar, and onions, which harms our farmers’ competitiveness and disrupts the agricultural value chain,” he told the plenary.
The House leader earlier promised to closely monitor the implementation of the New Agrarian Emancipation Act, under which P5.7 billion in debt incurred by 610,000 farmers and other agrarian reform beneficiaries will be written off.
“In addition to our priority measures and in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s commitment to sustainable fisheries, we will increase the existing strategic agriculture and fisheries development zones,” Romualdez said. “These zones will not only reinforce our fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing but also promote responsible fishing practices, safeguard our marine resources, and support the livelihoods of our fisherfolk.”
Romualdez said the House would also “upgrade and modernize” the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) program to “accelerate the development of vital transportation networks, energy systems, and digital infrastructure that are essential for a thriving economy.”
He took pride in the achievements the House made during the First Regular Session of Congress, for which he expressed his deep gratitude to his colleagues.
“The First Regular Session’s accomplishments bear testament to our collective will and determination. We have raised the standards, and the expectations are high. Yet, we are not daunted. We are inspired. We are not simply lawmakers but nation-builders and champions of the people,” he said.
