Reyes still Marinduque lawmaker, says Belmonte

MANILA, Philippines - The House of Representatives continues to recognize Regina Reyes as representative of the lone congressional district of Marinduque, Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said yesterday.

Belmonte confirmed in a news conference that he received a letter from Lord Allan Jay Velasco urging the House to unseat Reyes and to install him in her place.

Velasco, son of Supreme Court (SC) Justice Presbitero Velasco, sent the letter after the SC affirmed its decision disqualifying Reyes for allegedly being an American citizen.

Reyes claimed she had renounced her American citizenship shortly before the last May elections.

Belmonte said he also received a letter from Reyes who insisted that questions about the Marinduque congresswoman’s qualification should be within the jurisdiction of the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET), not the SC.

“The crux of the controversy here is the jurisdiction of the HRET,” he said.

He said under previous SC rulings and as far as the HRET is concerned, its jurisdiction starts when a congressional winner has been proclaimed, has taken his or her oath and has assumed office.

He said the House would study the letters of Velasco and Reyes during the Christmas break, which starts next weekend.

The provincial canvassing board proclaimed Reyes after she defeated Velasco by 4,000 votes.

Reyes took her oath before Belmonte, assumed office on June 30 and has since been doing her job as representative of her province.

More than 100 lawmakers led by Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali have signed a resolution upholding HRET’s jurisdiction over her disqualification case.

Velasco questions Umali resolution

Meanwhile, Velasco questioned Umali’s resolution describing it as a clear disrespect of the SC decision.

Velasco also questioned the manner by which the signatures were being collected – specifically why the paper on which the lawmaker affixed their signatures on, allegedly does not appear to be a part of the resolution.

He alleged the signatures could be used for Umali’s proposal to impeach SC justices over what the lawmaker described as “judicial despotism” in  the high tribunal.

“It must be recalled that a few weeks ago, the Supreme Court, in a landmark decision, declared the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) allocated to the members of the Senate and the House of Representatives unconstitutional,” he said.

Velasco suggested that the signature gathering be undertaken under the supervision of the Secretary General to avoid criticisms that the proponents did not allow the House members to read the contents of the resolution. – With Edu Punay