OUSTED House speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez in a statement on Wednesday conceded to his newly installed successor Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, whom Mr. Alvarez also met that day at the House of Representatives.
But Mr. Alvarez’s allies continued to challenge Ms. Arroyo’s election last Monday at Wednesday’s plenary session.
Mr. Alvarez said in his statement: “We cannot undo the past, but we can certainly shape our future. The House of Representatives has chosen a new Speaker in the person of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Alang-alang sa bayan (For the sake of the country), let us get back to work and move on.”
Ms. Arroyo said she discussed with Mr. Alvarez the legislative agenda of the President Rodrigo R. Duterte.
She later told reporters: “Looking at the legislative agenda that he (President Rodrigo R. Duterte) talked about in his SONA (State of the Nation Address), number one was the Coconut Farmers Fund, we’re done with that, it’s in the Senate. Number two, the Land Use Act, we’re done with that, it’s in the Senate. Number three is the Disaster Management Department. I’ve looked through where it is, it is still in the technical working group.”
For his part, Rep. Rodolfo C. Fariñas of the 1st District of Ilocos Norte, now deemed the former majority leader by Ms. Arroyo’s allies, questioned Wednesday’s plenary proceedings after a resolution was entered into the House records upholding Ms. Arroyo’s election as Speaker.
The House was in the course of adopting the said resolution, No. 2025, when Mr. Fariñas questioned on the floor that it should have passed the committee on rules, which he heads.
“As of the last session the other day, I am the Majority Leader and chair of Committee on Rules. May I know if this resolution passed the Committee on Rules?” he said. “I am chair and I do not know of this.” But Mr. Fariñas was told there was an “interim” committee head, at which point, despite his objections on the floor, the House voted to adopt the resolution.
Interim Majority Leader Fredenil H. Castro said his appointment by Ms. Arroyo “implicitly” removed Mr. Fariñas from the post.
“When I was designated by the duly elected speaker of the House as interim majority (leader), I had the authority to take over the position of the Majority Leader,” Mr. Castro later told reporters.
For its part, the House Minority said it will remain the minority despite objections by independent groups also seeking that designation.
“We still maintain that we are the duly constituted minority. You know what was declared vacant was the position of the Speakership, all other else, status quo ‘yon,” Deputy Minority Leader Alfredo A. Garbin, Jr. said in a press briefing on Wednesday with members of that minority.
Minority Leader Danilo E. Suarez, who voted for Ms. Arroyo, said on Tuesday he was eyeing the post of Majority Leader, but later withdrew, saying he had a “change of heart.”
Albay Rep. Edcel C. Lagman, however, argued that Mr. Suarez and the rest of the Minority bloc “ousted themselves from the minority” after voting for Ms. Arroyo.
Marikina City Rep. Romero S. Quimbo of the Liberal Party said House Rules dictate that members who voted for the winning candidate shall be part of the Majority.
He also said Mr. Suarez not only voted for Ms. Arroyo, but also campaigned for her. Mr. Suarez was also the first to sign the manifesto that sought support for Ms. Arroyo and was circulated in Monday’s session.
“I did my part. I informed the Minority about this possible scenario of a possible change of leadership, I asked my friends to spread to the… lahat naman sila may mga kaibigan (all of them have friends),” Mr. Suarez said in his defense.
The Makabayan bloc also criticized the new Speaker in its press conference on Wednesday.
“Patunay ito na talagang batikang magnanakaw ng kapangyarihan si Arroyo. Siya na ang ‘Cheater for All Seasons’,” Gabriela Rep. Emmi A. de Jesus of Makabayan said. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

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