The minority
Ousted house speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has accepted his fate, even as his allies tried to question the resolution that catapulted Arroyo as House Speaker. A shouting match even erupted at the House, with lawmakers failing to get their points or objections heard. But after the commotion died down, a new battle seems to be raging in the House, particularly who gets to become the new minority bloc. Twelve members of the Liberal Party that abstained from voting are now claiming to be the true minority. Five LP members voted for Arroyo, while seven were absent. The twelve already includes the so-called “Magnificent Seven.”
Based on the rules of the House, those who did not vote for the winning candidate for speaker would automatically be recognized as the minority. But the Makabayan Bloc is also interested in the minority, claiming to be the true fiscalizers. They are supposedly in talks with the Liberal Party regarding joining forces. Then there is the group still loyal to or allied with Alvarez. But being members of PDP-Laban themselves, how can they be regarded as the minority? The previous so-called minority headed by Suarez is still asserting their leadership of the minority. The minority has a duty to fiscalize the majority, not simply oppose everything that the majority will undertake, in order to have a true check and balance in Congress. So if you are allied with the majority, how can you even truly fiscalize?
Who will be recognized as the official minority will probably be known in the coming days, as groups jockey and make their cases. Personally, I believe it would be better if the known opposition to the administration band together and form the new minority. With a supermajority in the House, a true fiscalizer must come from the opposition, and not just a smaller group of known supermajority allies. Congress should not have a repeat of the same situation where Alvarez had control of both the majority and minority. Congress has always been seen as President Duterte’s “rubber stamp”, with so many jumping ship to join the majority. So the true minority must come from the opposition, and not the known allies of Duterte and Arroyo. Besides, didn’t Suarez vote for Arroyo? Wouldn’t that make him belong to the majority?
The “no-el” scenario of Alvarez might be dead in the water, for now. If the 2019 elections were scrapped, the lawmakers’ terms would have been extended, an idea that Alvarez seems to embrace. Some say that proposal may have cost Alvarez many allies, aside from the “Sara Duterte hand.” President Duterte was also known to be uncomfortable with a “no-el” scenario. As many quietly slipped into Arroyo’s camp, Alvarez was like a deer in headlights last Monday. Now, he is no longer Speaker of the House. As they say, nothing is “forever.”
Thank heavens for that.
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