Party-list bloc conducts loyalty check in House

Mara Cepeda

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Party-list bloc conducts loyalty check in House
The 54 party-list lawmakers issue a manifesto reaffirming their membership to their bloc after 12 of its members signed a coalition agreement with the National Unity Party

STILL 54-STRONG. Several members of the party-list coalition pose for a group photo after meeting on June 26, 2019 to settle an issue over the heated speakership race. File photo by Mara Cepeda/Rappler

MANILA, Philippines – Concerned that they may be losing their numbers, the party-list coalition in the House of Representatives has conducted a loyalty check among its members. 

The office of  1-Pacman Representative Michael Romero, Party-list Coalition Foundation Inc (PCFI) president, released on Tuesday, August 6, a copy of a brief manifesto signed by all 54 party-list legislators reaffirming their membership to the bloc.

Romero gave a copy of the manifesto to the media on the same day that 13 party-list groups signed a coalition agreement with the National Unity Party (NUP), one of the major political organizations in the country. 

“To stave off any attempts to involve the party-lists in any political realignments in the House of Representatives, the 54 members of the Party-list Coalition Foundation Inc have reaffirmed their commitment to remain with the coalition,” Romero said.

Among those who signed the manifesto are the following party-list lawmakers who are now allied with NUP:

  • ACT-CIS Representative Rowena Taduran
  • ACT-CIS Representative Jocelyn Tulfo
  • ACT CIS Representative Eric Yap
  • Ako Bicol Representative Alfredo Garbin Jr
  • Ako Bicol Representative Elizaldy Co
  • Ako Bicol Representative Angelica Co
  • Ako Bisaya Representative Sonny Lagon
  • DUMPER PTDA Representative Claudine Diana Bautista
  • Galing sa Puso Representative Jose Padiernos 
  • LPGMA Representative Rodolfo Albano
  • Marino Representative Carlo Lisandro Gonzalez
  • PBA Representative Jericho Nograles

Taduran earlier clarified that her party-list group’s coalition agreement with NUP does not mean they were leaving the party-list bloc.

“We welcome the adoption of ACT-CIS Party-list under the National Unity Party. This will help the party-list to widen its affiliation in achieving the national goal towards a progressive nation. However, ACT-CIS Party-list will remain its membership to PCFI as it is committed in attaining its national economic objectives of the administration,” said Taduran.

Over the weekend, Romero reminded his bloc members that it is against the law for a party-list lawmaker to join any political party.

With the entry of its new members, NUP surpassed the PCFI as the second biggest bloc in the House as NUP now has 57 members against PCFI’s 54.

The PCFI earlier used its 54-strong membership to convince speakership candidates to give them 20% of the total leadership posts in the House.

Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, whom the PCFI later decided to vote for as a bloc, has committed to grant the PCFI’s demand. – Rappler.com

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Mara Cepeda

Mara Cepeda specializes in stories about politics and local governance. She covers the Office of the Vice President, the Senate, and the Philippine opposition. She is a 2021 fellow of the Asia Journalism Fellowship and the Reham al-Farra Memorial Journalism Fellowship of the UN. Got tips? Email her at mara.cepeda@rappler.com or tweet @maracepeda.