Back to a rubber stamp House FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 05/18/2010

Back to a rubber stamp House

FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 05/18/2010 If Gloria Arroyo runs for the speakership post and wins, it will be the first time — perhaps in a long time, too — that the Speaker of the House of Representatives will be one not anointed by the new Malacañang tenant. If Noynoy Aquino’s anointed, said to be Rep. Feliciano Belmonte, does win the speakership, through the formation of a coalition with Manny Villar’s Nacionalista Party (NP) and the Nationalist People’s Coalition, then the nation can again be assured of a rubber stamp House of Representatives under an Aquino presidency. But there is still one congressman — Rep. Boying Remulla of the NP — who has said he wants to run for the speakership, too. This, according to some congressmen, would boil down not to a majority (one half of the members plus one) win by the next Speaker, but by a plurality of votes, which should make it easy for Gloria to win the speakership, that is, if her Lakas-Kampi partymates — said to number 100, don’t turn themselves into political butterflies. With Boying Remulla in the speakership race picture, it is presumed that the NPs are not likely to coalesce with the LPs, that is, again, if the NP won’t have its congressmen flit from party to another. While the country hardly ever had an independent Lower House, we may just have a fairly independent Congress, although this is will likely not come about, considering the quality of congressmen we have, in the sense of their not being loyal to their party. All told, what will matter most of them is their pork barrel and the way the still Malacañang tenant Gloria, used this to get her allies in tow. It is also almost certain that Noynoy will use the same tactics, to get himself a rubber stamp House.... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100518com2.html

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