GMA dinner host plays Santa at House

MANILA, Philippines – The congressman who footed a $15,000 bill for a sumptuous dinner for President Arroyo and her entourage in her recent trip to the US played Santa Claus yesterday.

Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez raffled off some P300,000 among employees of the House of Representatives who attended the regular Monday flag-raising ceremony.

Some 20 personnel were lucky to win P5,000 each, while scores won smaller amounts ranging from P500 to P4,000.

Among the more than 250 House members, Suarez is the only one who gives such huge amount of cash to employees during this time of the year. Not even the richest lawmakers do it.

“I have been doing this for years, pag Pasko lang naman (only during Christmas). You have to be generous to employees,” he told reporters.

Suarez is a wealthy lawmaker, but not the richest. The richest House members are Las Piñas Rep. Cynthia Villar, who is worth about P1 billion; and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, who is worth about P500 million.

The Quezon lawmaker played Santa just days after House personnel received P50,000 each as Christmas bonus.

Speaker Prospero Nograles said the huge bonanza represented “accumulated benefits.”

“We are releasing the money at a time our employees need it most,” he said.

A source in the committee on accounts said the House is able to give a huge amount of benefits “because reforms in the use of funds have enabled us to save millions, which we are giving to our employees.”

The committee, chaired by Misamis Occidental Rep. Herminia Ramiro, manages the House budget.

The P50,000 bonanza consisted of a P25,000 Speaker’s bonus, P15,000 grocery allowance, and P10,000 inflation allowance.

An additional P10,000 is forthcoming. It represents the annual Christmas incentive President Arroyo has ordered to be given to all government workers.

It is not known how much Senate personnel are getting in Christmas bonus.

When Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile took over the Senate presidency from Sen. Manuel Villar, he and Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who he chose as accounts committee chairman, gave an additional P5,000 monthly allowance to Senate employees.

This year, Congress has a budget of P7.6 billion, of which P4.7 billion is for the House of Representatives, which has 268 members and 3,600 personnel.