House members urged: Attend sessions

MANILA, Philippines - Members of the House of Representatives were urged Saturday to attend sessions from Monday to Wednesday, instead of going to political events.

Former representative Renato Magtubo of party-list group Partido ng Manggagawa made the appeal after the House failed to hold a session for the past two weeks since President Aquino’s final State of the Nation Address (SONA) due to lack of quorum.

Some members apparently took advantage of the hospitalization of Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. last week by not showing up.

The few members who attended sessions tried to proceed to do the business of the House, but Buhay party-list Rep. Lito Atienza always raised the quorum question.

Atienza said it was important for lawmakers to attend sessions.

Magtubo lamented that there were many congressmen who showed up in recent political gatherings but only a few were present at the session hall.        

“There were only few members in the session hall but many attended the Liberal Party events at the Club Filipino and Gloria Maris and the SONA version of Vice President Jejomar Binay at the Cavite State University,” Magtubo said.

He said lawmakers should be enthusiastic not only in going to political gatherings but in attending their sessions as well, adding that his former colleagues should first do their job and attend to politics later.

Doing their job as lawmakers is in fact more important at this time when the campaign season is still several months away and the House and the Senate have to attend to important pending measures, he said.

These measures include the anti-dynasty bill and the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill, he said.

“We hope that in the last few months of Congress, our lawmakers will focus on passing vital measures instead of being fixated on politics,” Magtubo said.

He addressed this appeal to all members of the House and the Senate, whether finishing their terms of office, seeking reelection or aspiring for higher or lower office next year.

He also claimed that he received information that Sen. Grace Poe is being “pressured” to agree to be the vice presidential running mate of outgoing Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II, the administration’s standard bearer in the 2016 elections.         

“The pressure is there. It’s directed at Grace Poe, who is being asked to slide down to VP,” he said.

He said the pressure comes in the form of public pronouncements from administration supporters that Poe still lacks experience to lead the country and should not run for president in 2016.

Administration allies also earlier said the nation needs 18 years of daang matuwid (straight path) to attain inclusive growth, which meant six years under the Aquino leadership, six years under Roxas and another six years under Poe, if she runs for vice president in 2016 and for president in 2022 under the LP banner, he added.