The House of Representatives under Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez has proven to be more active, vocal, and aggressive, perhaps catching the Senate by surprise.
Thus said Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. David Suarez on Monday, amid innuendos from the senators that House members have been bullying them.
“Wala namang bullying na nangyayari (There is no bullying happening). I think what the Senate is seeing is that the House is more vocal when it comes to national issues,” Suarez said in a press conference.
“The House is more vocal about issues close to their heart. The House is reacting to what is happening in our country. And in any democracy, that should be a welcome development,” he said.
According to the Quezon congressman, House members are no longer the type to wait on the sidelines, content to follow the lead of the senators.
“Before, we were just waiting to see what the Senate would do, we were waiting, silently, for what would be the development. But right now, you see the aggressiveness of members of the House when it comes to tackling national issues,” he stressed.
Romualdez has consistently pushed for revisions to the 1987 Constitution, particularly its restrictive economic provisions. Doing so will allow more foreign direct investments to enter the Philippines and unlock its true economic potential, the Speaker said earlier.
Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr., for his part, dismissed as an “insult” the tagging of some senators that the recent People’s Initiative (PI) for Charter change (Cha-cha) was a “pekeng initiative” (fake initiative).
“It’s an insult to the people if you refer to it as fake Initiative. It’s called People’s Initiative for a reason,” Gonzales, of Pampanga’s third district, said.
He said one of the mayors in his district was among the first signatories of the PI when it was launched last month. This prompted the mayor’s constituents to sign up as they believe economic Charter Change is necessary.
“The mayor said, a mayor is part of the people too,” Gonzales said. “Why would you call it a fake initiative? A mayor was among those who signed. Does that mean the mayor didn’t know what he was doing?”
Gonzales reiterated that the signatures for PI were real and authentic — contrary to the claim of the senators that money was involved in the campaign.
“As to their claim that money was being exchanged for signatures, not a single centavo was given to the signatories… that’s why their remarks are somewhat hurtful,” stressed Gonzales.