JDV belittles bid to unseat him as Speaker

Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. asserted yesterday his leadership in the House of Representatives as he started to reconcile with pro-impeachment congressmen who had threatened to oust him.

"They (pro-impeachment bloc) cannot even muster the numbers to transmit (the complaint), how much more to change the leadership (of the House)?" he asked.

"Let us bridge the gap (between the pro- and anti-impeachment congressmen, and between the House and the SC) and reconcile relationships," he said.

De Venecia said the actions of the House were toward "charity to all and malice towards no one" since the impeachment of Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. last month.

"Let us begin to bind the wounds of the House and the nation," he said.

De Venecia said he has instructed Camarines Sur Rep. Rolando Andaya, chairman of the committee on appropriations, to resume work on next year’s proposed national budget.

In a vote of 115-77, the House has affirmed the Supreme Court’s decision declaring as unconstitutional the impeachment of Davide.

As session resumed Monday, Maguindanao Rep. Didagen Dilangalen of Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino raised a motion declaring all positions vacant.

However, Dilangalen later withdrew his motion.

De Venecia’s "Sunshine Coalition" is comprised of Lakas- Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD), National People’s Coalition (NPC), Nacionalista Party (NP), PDP-Laban, Reporma, Liberal Party (LP), Aksyon Demokratiko, Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL), and the Probinsya Muna Development Initiative (Promdi).

Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, chairman of the committee on accounts, and Batanes Rep. Florencio Abad, LP leader in the House, said the latest voting shows that the coalition that installed De Venecia is "very much" intact.

Manila Rep. Harry Angping of NPC said the pro-impeachment bloc, which includes a sprinkling of Lakas and LP congressmen, remains united, and that this week they will meet to chart their next move.

"The alliance is under review," he said. "But personally, I don’t think the speakership would be an issue."

Angping said the crack in the "Sunshine Coalition" was not over the speakership, but the transmittal of the articles of impeachment to the Senate.

For the NPC, the future of the coalition would be "based on lessons that would strengthen (it) or a step towards breaking up," he added.

However, Dilangalen said the minority bloc led by the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP) believes that ousting De Venecia is still possible to force the transmittal of the articles of impeachment to the Senate.

The impeachment complaint of ousted President Joseph Estrada against Davide and seven other Supreme Court justices could also be revived, he added.

Palawan Rep. Abraham Mitra of LDP said the outcome of yesterday’s session would have been different if De Venecia had not been presiding.

"The House failed because of poor generalship," he said. "The chamber had succumbed to the SC ruling because of De Venecia."

Abad said the second impeachment complaint could no longer be transmitted to the Senate because it had been reduced to a "scrap of paper," while the first one had been rendered "moot and academic."

Angping said the NPC is "lukewarm" to the idea of reviving the first impeachment complaint because it "smacks" of political vengeance.

"The second complaint was on the issue of graft and corruption, while the first was on the legitimacy of the Arroyo administration," he added.

Muntinlupa Rep. Rufino Biazon said the House must restore its credibility as the impeachment had tarnished its image.

"It would be best for everyone to close the book and concentrate on restoring the trust of the people in Congress in particular, and the government in general," he said.