TUCP faction vows to install own man in Congress

MANILA, Philippines - A faction of labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) vowed yesterday to install its own man in the House of Representatives when Congress resumes on July 28.

The group of former Bohol representative and senator Ernesto Herrera made the announcement after the Court of Appeals recognized it as the legitimate TUCP and Herrera as its president.

Herrera‘s faction said it would install Roland dela Cruz as its representative.

The 39-year-old Dela Cruz, who is deputy general secretary of the 80,000-strong National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines, will replace Raymond Democrito Mendoza, who was installed by a faction led by his father, former TUCP president Democrito Mendoza Sr.

Herrera and the elder Mendoza were among the labor group’s founding members and long-time leaders.

Rep. Mendoza is expected to fight for his congressional seat. Before Congress adjourned its first regular session two weeks ago, the House elected him as part of its 12-member contingent in the Commission on Appointments, the body that screens Cabinet appointments and major promotions in the military and diplomatic service.

The House would have to accept a party-list nominee before he could become a member.

TUCP‘s Herrera faction said Mendoza Sr. resigned as the labor group’s president in 2011.  

“Mendoza’s resignation, conveyed in writing, was accepted by TUCP’s national executive board. Herrera, then general secretary, automatically succeeded Mendoza, based on TUCP‘s constitution and bylaws,” it said.

However, it said the elder Mendoza later recalled his resignation, which set off a dispute that the CA resolved in a ruling first promulgated in October 2013 and affirmed last June 16.

The Herrera faction said the court ordered the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to ensure that Herrera and other duly-designated officers, “shall have full use and access to the TUCP offices including its equipment, facilities, papers, properties in Quezon City and located elsewhere, as may be necessary in the discharge of official duties, without interruption or disruption.”

The Mendoza wing previously padlocked TUCP‘s headquarters in Diliman, Quezon City, forcing Herrera and the other officers and staff to temporarily hold office in Manila.

Aside from TUCP, other party-list groups have their share of infighting. For instance, Rep. Roy Señeres of Overseas Filipino Workers Party wants his colleague, Juan Revilla, stripped of his congressional seat.