35 members had perfect attendance – House official

MANILA, Philippines - An official of the House of Representatives said yesterday that her office is still finalizing the attendance record of members of the chamber.

Secretary-general Marilyn Barua-Yap said that based on initial data she has gathered, “35 members registered a clean 100-percent attendance record, including Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Parañaque City Rep. Roilo Golez.”

She disputed the attendance monitoring report of the website rollcall.ph, which showed that only Belmonte was present in all 125 sessions from July 27, 2010, when the 15th Congress convened to Nov. 14, 2012.

The website’s tally was based on the roll call of members as reflected in the House journals, which record the chamber’s plenary proceedings, including the calling of the roll.

The record shows that 35 members attended all 61 sessions last year, while 24 were present in all 59 sessions in 2011. There is no report for July to December 2010.

However, only 13 members scored perfect attendance for the past two years.

Aside from Belmonte and Golez, those who had perfect attendance were Diosdado Arroyo of Camarines Sur, Jorge Banal of Quezon City, Leopoldo Bataoil of Pangasinan, Winston Castelo of Quezon City, Rachel del Mar of Cebu City, Salvio Fortuno of Camarines Sur, Edcel Lagman of Albay, Florencio Noel of An Waray, Jesus Paras of Bukidnon, Miro Quimbo of Marikina, and Isidro Lico of Ating Koop. 

Barua-Yap issued the clarification apparently in response to complaints from some members, who did not agree with the website}s report.

One of them was Golez, who told The STAR in a text message that Barua has assured him that he had attended all sessions of the House.

“I have guarded my perfect attendance record since I became a congressman in 1992,” he said.

The rollcall.ph website, which claims that its report “is accurate as of Nov. 14, 2012,” recorded Golez as absent on March 21, 2012 and on Sept. 9, 2011.

The website said its report is based on roll call attendance and it was possible that the lawmakers who were reflected as absent showed up after the calling of the roll.

The STAR checked the House journals posted in the chamber’s website and they indeed show that Golez did not respond to the roll call on March 21, 2012 and Sept. 9, 2011.

However, the subsequent record of proceedings for the March 21 session showed him participating in the voting, which means he might have been late or the attendance taker might have missed him.

But Golez said he has never been absent in any roll call. 

“I never arrived after the roll call as I usually arrived before 4 or at the latest, around 4:30 p.m. We all know roll call is done after 4:30 p.m.”

“By the way, I also dispute that record stating I was absent in any roll call. If I was not in the session hall at the start of the roll call, I was usually in PLLO (Presidential Legislative Liaison Office behind the session hall) doing my paper work. I would approach the secretariat to indicate I was around and they would acknowledge,” he said.