PRESIDENTIAL son Ilocos Rep. Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos III was elected yesterday as senior deputy majority leader of the House of Representatives, a day after his uncle Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez was installed as Speaker.
The 28-year-old Marcos was nominated to the position by the majority bloc despite being a neophyte lawmaker, breaking the tradition of giving top positions in the House leadership to senior members.
As senior deputy majority leader, Marcos will be a member of the powerful House committee on rules, which is chaired by majority leader Manuel Jose “Mannix” Dalipe.
The panel is in charge of crafting the general rules of the House, rules of procedure governing inquiries in aid of legislation, rules of procedure in impeachment proceedings, the daily Order of Business and Calendar of Business; the referral of bills, resolutions, speeches, committee reports, messages, memorials and petitions; and the creation of committees inclusive of determining their respective jurisdictions.
Also yesterday, 4Ps party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan was elected minority leader by the 25 lawmakers who did not vote for Romualdez as Speaker.
“We are happy to announce and put in the record the election of our new minority leader from party-list 4Ps Congressman Nonoy Libanan,” Northern Samar Rep. Paul Daza told the floor in a manifestation.
Libanan, a former Eastern Samar representatives who had also served as immigration commissioner, took his oath before the Speaker and vowed to “perform my task as a responsible minority of this august chamber.”
NEW COMPANY UNION?
Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, a member of the opposition, earlier urged Romualdez to allow the formation of a legitimate minority bloc and do away with the old practice of forming a “company union” led by a pseudo minority leader.
Despite being the “authentic” leader of the opposition at the House, Lagman said he could not deliver his traditional “counter-SONA” a day after the President’s State of the Nation Address because Libanan was recognized as the minority leader.
He said the original arrangement was for him to proceed with his speech since Libanan was not yet ready to deliver his counter-SONA “but as the minority leader has decided to deliver his counter-SONA today, I was expecting that I would also be delivering my critique of President Marcos, Jr.’s State of the Nation Address after him.”
“Since by tradition, the authentic opposition’s Counter SONA is delivered the day after the President delivers his SONA, I have decided to furnish the media and the Plenary Support Service of the House, for the record, a copy of my Counter SONA,” Lagman told reporters.
Lagman’s camp said Libanan cannot be considered a member of the minority bloc because he was among the politicians who actively campaigned for President Marcos.
Bagong Henerasyon party-list Rep. Bernadette Herrera, who was chosen to be deputy minority leader, said: “This will be a brand new challenge for me and I hope to accomplish it with flying colors as I’ve done in my past roles as a legislator.”
Besides Libanan, the following now constitute the House minority bloc: Daza, Herrera, Johnathan Clement Abalos II (PL, 4Ps), Bonifacio Bosita (PL, 1-Rider), Arlene Brosas (PL, Gabriela), France Castro (PL, ACT-Teachers), Lex Anthony Cris Colada (PL, AAMBIS-OWA), Sergio Dagooc (PL, APEC), Presley De Jesus (PL, PHILRECA), Nicolas Enciso VIII (PL, Bicol Saro), Felimon Espares (PL, COOP-NATCCO), Ramon Rodrigo Gutierrez (PL, 1-Rider), Mujiv Hataman (PL, Basilan), Wilbert Lee (PL, AGRI), Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino (PL, OFW), Raoul Danniel Manuel (PL, Kabataan), Florencio Noel (PL, An Waray), Harris Christopher Ongchuan (Northern Samar), Joseph Stephen Paduano (PL, Abang Lingkod), Jeffrey Soriano (PL, ACT-CIS), Reynolds Michael Tan (Samar), Stephen James Tan (Samar), and Rosanna Vergara (Nueva Ecija).
COMMITTEES
The House also elected other leaders to various chairmanship positions, including Albay Rep. Joey Salceda who retained his post as the leader of the committee on ways and means, and Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr. who retained the chairmanship of the committee on natural resources.
The other lawmakers also named as committee chairmen were Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, committee on appropriations; Bohol Rep. Edgardo Chatto, climate change; Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo, basic education and culture; Aklan Rep. Teodorico Haresco Jr., economic affairs; Baguio City Rep. Mark Go, higher and technical education; Negros Occidental Rep. Juliet Ferrer, justice; Lanao del Norte Rep. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo, Muslim affairs; and Surigao del Sur 1st District Rep. Romeo Momo, public works and highways.
Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo was elected as senior vice chair of the committee on appropriations while the Speaker’s wife, Tingog party-list Rep. Yedah Romualdez, is the chair of the committee on accounts which is in charge of the budget of the House.
Meanwhile, Deputy Speaker Gloria Arroyo of Pampanga has asked the leadership to grant her a seven-day medical and wellness leave as she is set to travel to France and Singapore.
“She (Arroyo) intends, however, to join the sessions of Congress via Zoom while she is out of the country,” the former president’s office said in a statement.
The statement said Arroyo, who recently tested positive for COVID-19, has been certified by her personal physician as no longer infectious “but she could not attend the SONA (State of the Nation Address) because the President’s presence required a negative RT-PCR test for all attending the SONA, whereas she tested positive on RT-PCR two days before the SONA.”
