Duterte endorsement shreds semblance of House independence, solons say

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte said his endorsement of a shared speakership does not count as interference in the affairs of the House of Representatives but opposition lawmakers stressed it has compromised the independence of the lower chamber.

Duterte announced Monday his endorsement of a term-sharing agreement between Reps. Alan Peter Cayetano (Taguig-Pateros) and Lord Allan Velasco (Marinduque) as House speakers, saying he had to step in to end the squabbling among his allies.

Under the agreement, Cayetano will be the speaker for the first 15 months, then Velasco will lead the lower chamber for the next 21 months.

The president also endorsed Rep. Martin Romualdez (Leyte) for the position of majority leader.

In an interview with Palace reporters, Duterte said his endorsement of House leaders is not interference in the affairs of Congress.

"There seems to be a crisis already. Nobody was willing to state with certainty. It’s not really independence. I am not interfering with the work sa legislation," the chief executive said.

He added: “It has nothing to do with the independence of the legislative body. Up to that point, it’s all politics.”

'Hands off'

The Presidential Legislative Liaison Office, which is under the president, has the mandate of the "promotion of presidential legislative initiatives and other administration-sponsored priority policy reforms and development programs," it says on its website.

Prior to naming his choice for House leader, Duterte and the Palace said he would keep his hands off the speakership contest.

It is still up to the lawmakers to select the new House leader, Duterte said.

“That is their privilege actually. I was just trying to end the impasse,” he said.

RELATED: Duterte leaves it to House to pick next speaker

The organization of the leadership of the legislature is the first order of business when the 18th Congress convenes on July 22. 

According to the 1987 Constitution, "the Senate shall elect its president and the House of Representatives its speaker, by a majority vote of all its respective members." The legislature is a separate branch of government from the executive department and the judiciary.

Cayetano—Duterte's running mate in the 2016 polls and later his Foreign Affairs secretary—has already started inviting House members to join the "Die-hard Duterte Supermajority", an indication of how the House will lean under him.

Makabayan: Duterte’s endorsement ‘compromised’ House independence

Lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc said the independence of the lower chamber has been compromised anew with the president’s endorsement of the two prospective speakers.

“With this politics of convenience and presidential intervention, the independence of the House is again severely compromised and the interest of the majority of the people sacrificed,” Rep. Carlos Zarate (Bayan Muna) said. Zarate is Makabayan bloc’s candidate for speaker, a bid that was more symbolic than actual, given the composition of the House membership.

Rep. Arlene Brosas (Gabriela) said Duterte’s endorsement of Cayetano and Velasco “[shreds] into bits any remaining semblance of an independent legislative branch.”

She also said: “President Duterte’s open proclamation of term-sharing for the House speaker shamelessly pontificates a rubber stamp lower house in tandem with a Duterte-dominated Senate.”

The May midterm elections saw Duterte allies dominating the races for both houses of Congress, opening a path for the president to push forward his legislative agenda, which includes reimposing death penalty and revising the constitution.

“As can be seen with the proposed agenda for the next Congress, charter change, term extension and another [Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion] law are at the top. The Filipino people are again at the losing end with this development,” Zarate said.

'What congressional independence?'

But for one political analyst, Duterte’s endorsement of a shared speakership will not have any implications on congressional independence, which he said has never existed anyway.

"The House of Representatives has always conformed to the wishes of Malacañang. So there’s no congressional independence to speak of," Dennis Coronacion, chairperson of the Political Science department of the University of Santo Tomas, told Philstar.com.

"It goes without saying that the speaker of the House is the anointed one of Malacañang," he also said.

The lower house—filled with Duterte’s allies—has approved legislation to revive capital punishment and re-write the constitution. The Senate, on the other hand, has traditionally served as a buffer against the president's more controversial plans.

In a separate press statement on charter change, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Tuesday that "the Senate always prides itself as independent of Malacañang." The members of the upper house have also been described as being independent of each other.

Coronacion said there have only been a few cases that House members showed their independence from the executive.

"A good example was when President Estrada was impeached by the congressmen led by then Speaker Manny Villar and in several cases when our congressmen would flex their muscle during budget hearings," he said.

But apart from being supportive of the administration, the speaker of the House is also an important position because the 2022 elections are just a few years away.

"The speaker can use his position to gain political leverage in the negotiations and backroom deals concerning the 2022 presidential election," Coronacion said. "His position can help the House speaker enormously in advancing his personal agenda and political ambition."