Amid coup rumors at the House of Representatives, supporters of Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano used their superiority in numbers to seize two critical committee chairmanships.
The upheaval came on the heels of Cayetano’s disclosure that Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco is out to remove him as Speaker.
Under a term-sharing agreement brokered by President Rodrigo Duterte, Velasco is supposed to assume the speakership in October.
Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab was removed as chairman of the powerful Committee on Appropriations and was replaced by ACT-CIS Rep. Eric Yap.
Ungab was earlier endorsed by Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte’s Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) for the speakership, but he lost to Cayetano.
“I believe that the only guide to a man is his conscience, and the truth will always prevail no matter what. I have served my country and people well to the utmost of my ability. I accept my fate and so be it,” Ungab said.
Yap, who used to head the House committee on games and amusement, was replaced by Abra Rep. Joseph Sto. Niño Bernos.
“I have no idea what happened because I’m not actively monitoring the news. When I arrived earlier, the Speaker talked to me about work, the responsibility, and of course, I’m just a worker. So, whatever I’m told to do, I just do it,” Yap said.
Mindoro Rep. Salvador Leachon, a supporter of Velasco, lost the chairmanship of the chamber’s contingent to the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal following a spat with Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte over the speakership issue.
In a surprise move in plenary session Monday, Deputy Majority Leader Jesus Crispin Remulla—Cayetano’s party-mate in the Nacionalista Party, stood on the floor to announce the changes in the committee chairmanships.
Kabayan Party-list Rep. Ron Salo will now head Leachon’s committee. Salo heads the House public information committee.
Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza accused Cayetano of staging a “drama” by floating the coup rumors himself, allegedly with the end goal of declaring all positions in the House vacant and calling for a new vote on the speakership to void his term-sharing agreement withVelasco.
Velasco, who is set to take over the House speakership in October, dismissed Cayetano’s coup allegation as “baseless.”
“These reports are far from the truth. The reports were meant to create deep division within the House of Representatives and its members, destroy camaraderie, distract lawmakers from fulfilling their mandate, and more importantly, derail the key legislative agenda of the Duterte administration,” Velasco said.
“Up to this day, I continue to honor the term-sharing agreement brokered by no less than President Rodrigo Duterte when the 18th Congress convened in July 2019. From the beginning, I never had any intention of reneging on this agreement,” he added.
The rivalry between Cayetano and Velasco has seeped down to their supporters as Villafuerte on Monday cried foul over Leachon’s remarks against him.
On Monday, Villafuerte said he merely echoed the statement of Cayetano that Velasco allegedly promised committee chairmanships and budget allocations to those who would support him and that Velasco should wait for his turn under the term-sharing agreement.
“I was surprised, Congressman Leachon answered angrily… using unprintable words, he took matters personally. Could he be suffering from high blood pressure?” Villafuerte said in Filipino.
Over the weekend, Leachon, a member of the majority bloc, berated Villafuerte as “a sucking opportunist” who clung to the House leadership to advance his personal interest.