Duterte: Set aside politics, pass budget

‘Duterte  hands off on speakership row’

MANILA, Philippines — President Duterte has asked lawmakers to set aside politics and pass the proposed P4.5-trillion national budget for next year as he maintained that he would not meddle in the House leadership dispute.

Through his spokesman Harry Roque, Duterte relayed to legislators his message that he wanted the 2021 budget passed immediately and that he did not want the battle for speakership to affect its passage.

House Bill 7727 or the General Appropriations Bill for 2021 was crafted to combat COVID-19, which has sent the economy into a recession and compelled the government to distribute billions of pesos in aid to workers and poor households.

“The appeal of the President to lawmakers is to stop politics and pass the national budget. The President does not meddle in the selection of the House speaker, which we hope will be set aside so the passage of the budget will move. Thank you very much to our lawmakers, and the President looks forward to your utmost cooperation,” Roque said in a televised statement yesterday.

Duterte, who called for a special session through Proclamation 1027 issued last Friday, expects the House of Representatives to hold sessions from Oct. 13 to 16 to act on the spending bill, he added.

Roque said the President made it clear that he has nothing to do with the political intramurals between Taguig Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano and Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco.

Velasco released pictures of his supposed meeting with the President’s daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio last Friday, just days after the mayor returned for work following a medical leave last week.

Speakership row

Duterte-Carpio has remained mum on the supposed speakership row, but Velasco ally and 1Pacman party-list Rep. Mikee Romero claimed that about 200 congressmen have signed up for the presumptive Speaker and are ready to cast their votes as soon as the post is vacated.

“At least 200 congressmen have already committed to throw their support for Velasco,” Romero said, adding that the number may further increase on the eve of the expected showdown between Velasco and Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano when sessions resume tomorrow.

Unimpeachable sources also revealed over the weekend that the presidential daughter has been calling up administration allies to support Velasco in the fight for the post.

Cayetano was able to meet twice with the President’s son, Davao City first district Rep. Paolo Duterte, the past two weeks, but failed to clinch a meeting with Sara.

Mindoro Oriental Rep. Doy Leachon said the most honorable thing for Cayetano to do is abide by his “gentleman’s agreement” with Velasco by stepping down as agreed upon last year.

“It is either he steps down and save face or suffer the ignominy of being ousted by his peers in Congress. His time is up,” he added.

Cayetano and his allies backpedaled on their original move to terminate budget deliberations and suspend session until Nov. 16, saying the approval of President Duterte’s 2021 national budget should be prioritized and expedited.

“Budget first and (Filipino) people first, politics later,” Deputy Speaker for finance and Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte told reporters in a Zoom briefing.

“The overriding concern is the approval of the constitutionally sound and legal budget. Anybody can call for a leadership change anytime. But let’s make the 2021 budget a priority first. Whoever wants to be Speaker should lay out first to his colleagues what he has to offer,” he insisted.

Deputy Speaker and Surigao del Sur Rep. Prospero Pichay Jr. warned though that the speakership squabble would derail Congress’ passage of the spending measure.

“It will delay the budget. Definitely it will disrupt the budget. And it will create confusion and disruption. The House members are not bound by the term-sharing deal President Duterte brokered between the two of them. Cayetano’s resignation was rejected,” he said.

House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez – president of Lakas-CMD – vowed to abide by Duterte’s instructions to hasten the approval of HB 7727, saying they will “respect” the term-sharing agreement.

“We will respect the term-sharing agreement and ensure a smooth transition of leadership in the House. Let us set aside politics and focus first on the passage of the national budget as requested by the President,” he said in a statement.

Reliable sources say Cayetano is banking on the support of his original Villar-led Nacionalista Party, the 64-member National Unity Party and about half of the 54-man Partylist Coalition Foundation Inc. whose president, 1Pacman’s Romero, was removed as deputy speaker.

Dasmariñas City Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr., president of NUP, personally went for Cayetano in the recent speakership squabble, but clarified the party has no official stand yet, and that they would abide by whatever decision President Duterte will give.

Independent opposition Reps. Edcel Lagman and Lito Atienza who are both critical of the Cayetano leadership described Duterte’s special session order as a “rebuke and rebuff” of the Speaker.

“The Speaker is drunk with power,” Atienza, a former Manila mayor, observed. “Malacañang has repudiated the Speaker, who is clearly drunk with power, and has become a huge embarrassment and liability to the President.

“Congressman Cayetano has betrayed the President. He has also double-crossed all the House members who elected him Speaker in July last year based on the term-sharing agreement blessed by the President no less,” Atienza said.

“Through all sorts of political machinations, Congressman Cayetano has shamelessly reneged on his solemn promise – made before the President – to step down as Speaker after 15 months and give way to Congressman Velasco,” the Buhay party-list congressman added.

Lagman, a congressman from Albay, said Duterte’s call for Congress to “hold special sessions on Oct. 13-16 to resume deliberations on the 2021 national budget is a rebuke of Cayetano who precipitately terminated the budget debates.”

The veteran Bicolano legislator earlier urged the President to “call soonest the Congress to a special session so that the deliberations on the enactment of the national budget could resume and assure the timely passage of the national budget for 2021.” – Delon Porcalla