House ready to hold special session, Adiong says

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives is ready to hold the special session called by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday, Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong said on Tuesday.

Adiong, an Assistant Majority Leader at the House, told reporters in an online interview that the special session will start at nine o’clock in the morning of Wednesday.

The lawmaker however clarified that no other topics will be discussed apart from the President’s reasons for calling a special session — which are key legislation up for third reading approval.

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“So the special session will be at nine o’clock.  So the House, of course, the House of Representatives is ready to attend this special session,” Adiong said mostly in Filipino.

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“‘When there is a special session, the agenda is specific, so we cannot discuss other things other than what was requested by Malacañang.  So the bills to be ratified have been specified, so outside of that, we cannot discuss any more.  So it’s going to be a short session only,” he added.

On Monday, Marcos called on Congress to hold a special session on Wednesday to fast-track social protection measures amid energy challenges and calamities.

Among the bills targeted for consideration are:

National Center for Geriatric Health

Amendments to the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education Act

Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) Act

Amendments to the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act

Last Mile and Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged and Conflict-Affected Areas Schools Act

Amendments to the Masustansyang Pagkain Para sa Batang Pilipino Act

Anti-Political Dynasty Law

Presidential Merit Scholarship Program

Other measures aimed towards strengthening social protection and uplifting the lives of the Filipino people

Moreover, Marcos said the special session will also allow the Commission on Appointments to act on pending appointments to key positions in the Cabinet, military, and foreign service to ensure continuity across government institutions.

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READ: Marcos calls for Congress special session

According to Adiong, of the several bills that were mentioned, the House would only have to ratify amendments to the bill institutionalizing AICS.

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“And all of the bills to be ratified that were mentioned, only the amendments to the AICS bill will have to be ratified by the House of Representatives, but the rest of those measures that are part of (those) to be ratified, we have finished it already and we’re just waiting for the Senate version,” he said.

He also said that it is highly likely that Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III will preside over the session, while Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander Marcos will be managing over the proceedings.

“So yes, we welcome and we’re ready to hold the session tomorrow,” he added.  “Since it’s a special session, so we anticipate the Speaker will be presiding and the Majority leader will also be handling the floor.”

Aside from the measures, the special session is believed to be an opportunity for the Senate to address its leadership squabble.

In recent weeks, the Senate has been hit by division between two groups — that of acting Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian and former Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, which stalled legislative work in Congress’ upper chamber.

The split between Gatchalian and Cayetano’s camps started after members of the then-Minority bloc under Gatchalian and former Senate President Vicente Sotto III walked out of the session due to the insistence of the Majority — led by Cayetano and Senator Rodante Marcoleta — to discuss a proposed amendment on Senate rules.

If approved, the amendment — made by Marcoleta through a motion — would have allowed online voting for senators who are not physically present during plenary deliberations.  The Minority, before walking out, questioned the rush to amend the rules, and as to why the amendment was contained in a motion instead of a formal resolution.

As a retaliation, the Cayetano bloc did not attend session last June 1 and 2.  On June 3, House lawmakers like Deputy Speaker Albee Benitez said that the Senate was on the verge of violating the 1987 Constitution, as there is a provision stating that the Senate cannot adjourn its session for more than three days without informing the House.

READ: Senate would have violated charter if no session held for third day — solons

This scenario was avoided after Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, who is part of Cayetano’s bloc, showed up, giving the Senate a quorum to hold session.  Positions were also declared vacant, paving the way for Gatchalian’s election as Senate President Pro Tempore and Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri being picked as the Majority Leader.

Gatchalian justified that 12 senators is already a majority under the condition that only 22 out of 24 senators are available — since Senator Jinggoy Estrada was detained on plunder raps while Senator Ronald dela Rosa is considered a fugitive.

But a day after the changes at the Senate, Cayetano’s bloc pushed with a blue ribbon committee hearing.  Then June 8, the Gatchalian bloc held its own blue ribbon committee, but the 18 former bodyguards did not show up.

For the House, Dy recognized Gatchalian’s leadership, congratulating him during his election as Senate President Pro Tempore last June 3, and having a brief conversation with him during a chance meeting in Sarangani last June 11, while inspecting the damage brought by the Mindanao earthquake.

READ: Dy, Gatchalian meet in Sarangani while inspecting quake-hit areas

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Marcos also acknowledged Gatchalian as the leader of the Senate during his Independence Day speech. /jpv