After impeachment, House revamp seen

It’s time to pay the political price for trying to impeach the Chief Executive.

Now that the impeachment complaint against President Arroyo has been dismissed, members of the House of Representatives face the chamber’s reorganization along political lines based on their votes during the impeachment.

"The House reorganization will push through," Davao del Sur Rep. Douglas Cagas said. "The battle lines are already drawn."

Cagas also assured Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. that he will continue leading the chamber amid rumors that the Speaker may lose his post upon his return next week from the United States.

According to Cagas, De Venecia has nothing to fear since the House reorganization comes "after a basic disagreement natural in a parliamentary democracy." De Venecia, he added, has the support of more than 170 congressmen.

The realignment of power in the House will affect Reps. Robert "Ace" Barbers of Surigao del Norte, Clavel Martinez of Cebu City, Edmund Reyes of Marinduque and Rufino Biazon of Muntinlupa City.

Barbers, son of former senator Robert Barbers, heads the House committee on accounts; Martinez is a member of the Commission on Appointments; Reyes chairs the education committee; and Biazon, son of Sen. Rodolfo Biazon, chairs the committee on Metro Manila development.

Other congressmen whose committee posts are up for realignment are Reps. Teodoro "Teddyboy" Locsin of Makati City, who chairs the committee on suffrage and electoral reforms; Deputy Speaker for Luzon Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, son of former President Corazon Aquino; and Cynthia Villar of Las Piñas, who heads the committee on higher and technical education.

Also affected by the reorganization are Reps. Gilbert Remulla of Cavite, who chairs the committee on public information; Etta Rosales of the party-list group Akbayan, who chairs the political and human rights committee; Nereus Acosta of Bukidnon; and Robert "Dudut" Jaworski Jr. of Pasig City, son of former senator Robert Jaworski.

Militant party-list lawmakers Reps. Satur Ocampo, Teodoro Casiño, Liza Masa, Crispin Beltran and Joel Virador will also be affected by the realignment in the House. These lawmakers preempted the majority’s move to support the President by declaring themselves independent.

House Majority Leader Prospero Nograles of Davao City said the reorganization will take place next week in an all-party caucus involving political parties allied with Lakas — the Liberal Party (LP) Nacionalista Party (NP), Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) and party-list groups.

These members of the Sunshine Coalition will be made to submit their nominations for the replacement of the committee chairmen and members who voted to impeach Mrs. Arroyo.

Some 22 majority members stand to lose their legislative committee posts.

The Lakas party caucus was held Tuesday night at the Sulo Hotel in Quezon City and was presided over by Nograles. It was during the caucus that the decision was made to strip lawmakers who voted to impeach the President of their committee posts.

"This is a political consequence," Nograles said. "We have to bite the bullet." According to him, had the voting gone the same way on another legislative measure instead of the impeachment proceedings, the dissent would have been allowed.

"Speaker De Venecia took a risk in supporting (Mrs. Arroyo). If we lost, we would also do the same," Nograles told reporters, citing the case of Sen. Manuel Villar Jr., who was booted out of the House speakership after he transmitted the impeachment complaint against former President Joseph Estrada to the Senate for trial in November 2000.

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte said the impeachment was "an attack against the President," adding that "the principle of undertaking a reorganization has been unanimously approved by all representatives of parties, but the method and timing will have to be decided next week."

An ally of the ruling Lakas-NUCD coalition in the House declared "solid support" for De Venecia’s leadership, saying efforts to unseat the Speaker were nothing but "empty threats."

Antipolo City Rep. Victor Sumulong said the opposition’s claims declaring all House positions vacant "are nothing more than empty threats."

Sumulong, who is executive vice president of Mrs. Arroyo’s Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) party, said its members, "like the majority of the members of the ruling coalition, are unanimous in our support for the leadership of Speaker De Venecia."

Sumulong spoke in reaction to the statement made by Cibac party-list Rep. Joel Villanueva that all House positions would have to be declared vacant if the chamber’s majority strip lawmakers of their posts for voting to impeach Mrs. Arroyo. Villanueva is the son of 2004 presidential also-ran and evangelist Eddie Villanueva.

Sumulong said the majority "voted solidly to dismiss the impeachment complaints against the President and our support for Speaker De Venecia will be just as solid."