MEMBERS of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) will remain with the majority coalition in the House of Representatives even with the resignation of its leader, Vice President Jejomar Binay, from the Cabinet.
"Membership in the majority coalition is a matter of personal choice of a member," said House Majority Floor Leader Neptali Gonzales II.
Binay spewed criticisms against the Aquino administration after he tendered his irrevocable resignation as presidential adviser for overseas Filipino workers' affairs and chair of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) last Monday.
But Gonzales said those were not enough reason to eject UNA members, led by Binay's daughter, Makati Cit Representative Mar-len Abigail Binay, from the majority coalition long as they are comfortable working with the House leadership.
"They have so far been supportive of the priority legislative measures," said Gonzales. "They are most welcome to stay in the majority coalition."
Earlier, the Makati City lawmaker said that they are most likely to remain with the majority bloc in the House unless Speaker Feliciano Belmonte will ask them to bolt the coalition.
Out of the 10 incumbent UNA lawmakers, nine of them are members of the majority coalition and these include Binay, Monique Yasmin Lagdameo (Makati), Sol Aragones (Laguna), Gustavo Tambunting (Paranaque), Gwendolyn Garcia (Cebu), Delphine Lee (Agri Party-list), Manny Pacquiao (Sarangani) and Vernan Biron Jr. (Iloilo).
Navotas City Representative Toby Tiangco, interim president of UNA, bolted the majority coalition in 2012 following the impeachment of then Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Renato Corona.
Caloocan City Representative Edgar Erice, vice chairman for political affairs of the ruling Liberal Party (LP), suggested earlier that UNA legislators should leave the majority bloc after the Vice President criticized the Aquino administration last Wednesday. (Sunnex)