THE 104 neophyte lawmakers have vowed to take the initiative to compel their colleagues to attend all sessions during the 17th Congress to pass all the priority bills of President Rodrigo Duterte, Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte said Friday.
During neophyte lawmakers’ fellowship dinner Thursday night, Villafuerte said the neophyte lawmakers would want to help improve the image of the House, where the lack of quorums had plagued the 16th Congress.
Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, who attended the meeting, was elated that the neophyte lawmakers were one with the House leadership in ensuring that the perennial problem on quorums would no longer happen.
“We need to attend sessions and congressional hearings. It is our constitutional duty to be present at all times in Congress because we are duly elected as representatives of our people,” Alvarez said in his address to the neophyte lawmakers during the meeting, which was also attended by San Juan City Rep. Ronaldo Zamora, the designated head of the 12-man House contingent to the Commission on Appointments for the 17th Congress.
Villafurte, the lead organizer of the event, said lawmakers must take advantage of the overwhelming trust rating obtained recently by President Duterte as shown by the Pulse Asia survey conducted from July 2 to 8, 2016, where the chief executive chalked up a 91-percent trust rating.
“We should take the cue from the President’s 91 percent trust rating, the highest ever from a President,” Villafuerte said.
“This should inspire Congress to improve its trust and approval ratings.”