On the first working day of the 14th Congress, many of our congressmen or their staff queued at bills and index division of the House of Representatives. If newspaper reports are to be believed, one congressman who was number 10 in the queue pleaded with one who was ahead in the line to allow him to file the first bill.
While the bill that the said congressman filed, is without doubt, of national import and welcomed by the entire populace it being the same affordable medicine bill that was almost passed before the adjournment of the 13th Congress, his action is not altogether acceptable. This behavior seldom happens now in getting jeepney rides, in withdrawing cash from ATM machines, in buying tickets in moviehouses, in paying grocery bills, and a host of other human activities that require us to queue. It would seem that his action was dictated by an ulterior and selfish motive. Perhaps he wants to be remembered in history as the author of the first bill that was filed in the 14th Congress. Furthermore, the “Affordable Medicine Bill” is expected to have easy sailing because, had there been a quorum, it should have been passed by Congress on the last working day of the 13th Congress. This time around the members of Congress will not show disunity under present realities and circumstances. It is just a matter of time before the bill gets passed. One picture is almost before us, the photo-op of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and said congressman, among others, flashed in all the major dailies signing the famous Affordable Medicine Bill.
I would like to believe that the congressman being referred to here is not guilty of selfishness or self aggrandizement and that his intentions really would be to address the concerns and interests of our people. — JERRY A. QUIBILAN, Crusaders for Peace, Prosperity, Unity, and Love