CAGAYAN de Oro City 2nd District Representative Rufus Rodriguez on Monday, September 7, 2020, questioned the need for a “people’s initiative” during the House of Representatives discussions on the proposed 2021 budget.

Rodriguez said this is against the rules of the House.

“This is against the rules. Committee of appropriations hearings are for members of Congress only,” Rodriguez said during the deliberation on the proposed budget for the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Monday.

House appropriations committee chairman and ACT-CIS Party-list Representative Eric Yap said the people’s initiative will allow the public to ask questions during the hearings.

Non-members of the House, like those in the academe, may also be invited as resource persons.

Yap argued that by removing the people’s initiative, representatives will no longer be able to hear the concerns of “ordinary citizens.”

"Kung ayaw niyong marinig ang boses ng mga ordinaryong tao dito sa floor, by your suggestion, I can do that,” Yap said.

"Sure, we follow the rules of the House. Huwag natin pakinggan ang boses ng ibang tao according to Congressman Rufus Rodriguez, then let’s do it. Thank you for your suggestion," he added.

Bataan Representative Geraldine Roman suggested that in the meantime, members of the panel could just read out the comments from the public through social media.

House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano earlier said the House will allow the public to directly participate in the 2021 budget meetings.

“Since the start of this pandemic, Congress has taken advantage of these new technologies to continue doing our work. Now, as we deliberate on the budget, we can use these same systems to allow our fellow citizens—not just to watch, but to directly participate in the process,” he said.

“This is going to be the first time that this will be done, so there might be some growing pains. But we want to make sure that it is as inclusive and comprehensive as possible. Dapat po lahat ng gustong magsalita ay mabibigyan ng pagkakataon na marinig ang boses," he added.

In his opening speech last Friday, September 4, Cayetano also vowed to look into the rampant corruption inside government offices.

“There is a perception of growing graft and corruption during the pandemic--let me warn each and every agency of the government, we are going to look at how you have been dealing with people during the pandemic,” he said. (SunStar Philippines)