Saturday, August 11, 2007 House 'independent bloc' deserted by leaders?
THE so-called Conscience Bloc composed of congressmen who supported the failed bid of Cebu Representative Pablo Garcia for the House speakership vowed to continue to press for House reforms despite what the desertion by some of the leaders.
The bloc, founded by Garcia of the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) and includes Representatives Luis Villafuerte of Camarines Sur, Jose Solis of Sorsogon and Danilo Suarez of Quezon, earlier maintained that it would neither join the House majority headed by Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. nor the minority led by San Juan Representative Ronaldo Zamora.
Garcia also announced that he would never accept the chairmanship of any House committee, prompting de Venecia and other House leaders to offer him to head the Philippine congressional delegation to the UN General Assembly in New York in September.
With a membership of about 25 "die-hard" Garcia supporters, the bloc was initially considered as "formidable" in the 14th Congress. But the number of its members has begun to dissipate following the election of Garcia as chairman of the influential House committee on revision of laws and Suarez as chairman of the powerful House committee on oversight.
Representative Roger Mercado of Southern Leyte was also named as head of the House committee on public works and highways.
Leyte Representative Martin Romualdez, a member of the bloc, said they will continue to push for legislative reforms as their battle-cry when Garcia, a former Cebu governor, launched his bid for the House's top post.
"The reforms and the conscience bloc's initiative are not inconsistent with a working Congress," Romualdez said. "Participation and involvement in committees is important to keep the House working," he added.
Romualdez said the statements attributed to Garcia "were meant to send the message that the bloc was serious and was not formed for bargaining purposes."
Nueva Vizvaya Representative Carlos Padilla, who also supported Garcia for the speakership, expressed surprise over the decision of the Cebu congressman's other supporters to accept the chairmanship of the committees offered to them.
"I thought they were resolute in their decision not to accept any offer for chairmanship," Padilla, a former House minority leader, told reporters.
"Be that as it may, it will only be me and Digs (Dilangalen) who will be left to carry on the fight for reforms," Padilla said, referring to Representative Didagen Dilangalen of Shariff Kabunsuan-Cotabato City.
Even Rep. Lorenzo "Erin" Tañada of Quezon, another member of the bloc, is being eyed by the House leadership for a seat at the powerful Commission on Appointments (CA) as representative of the Liberal Party.
Villafuerte, Solis and Cebu Representative Nerissa Soon-Ruiz, who were among the most vocal in the press attacks against de Venecia at the height of the fight for the speakership, have yet to receive offers for responsible House committee posts.
Solis, a retired military officer, has been ousted as chairman of the House committee on national defense, his former post given to Representative Arthur Celeste of Pangasinan.
Soon-Ruiz, a medical doctor, hopes to regain her old post as vice chairman of the House committee on health if "it will be offered to her", according to a source. (Sunnex)
