By Mortz C. Ortigoza
MANGALDAN – Pangasinan’s Congressman Christopher de
Venecia respected the decision of House of Representatives’ Speaker Pantaleon
Alvarez not to heed the order of the Sandiganbayan to suspend Representatives
Amado T. Espino and Luis Raymund Villafuerte.
Espino represented the Fifth District of Pangasinan
while Villafuerte is the congressman of Camarines Sur.
De Venecia, known as Toff, implored the understanding
of the public that the House of Representatives just like its equal but
separate counterpart the Supreme Court has its own rules how to deal with its members
who were ordered suspended by the Sandiganbayan, a government anti-graft court
that deals with public officials.
“Kasi the same thing with Chief Justice (Maria Lourdes)
Sereno who called for the autonomy from the other branches of government. She
has the power to discipline her people. The same also for the legislative
branch so ang pinag-aaralan namin ni Speaker Alvarez lahat ng possible action
that he can take”.
Congressmen Espino and Villafuerte were meted by the
Sandigabayan with 90 days preventive suspension after the former was accused of graft in connection with the
alleged illegal black sand mining activity in Lingayen Gulf during his term as
the governor of Pangasinan while the latter was charged with his alleged
anomalous P20-million fuel purchase he supposedly made as governor of
Camarines.
Villafuerte questioned the anti-graft body for suspending
him because he could no longer intimidate witnesses or tamper with evidence by
his continued stay in office since he was no longer governor but a solon at the
Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City.
Espino said that the suspension deprives him with his
inherent right to attend sessions or meetings, but also leaves his constituents
with no representation in Congress, especially these charges have been filed
when he was a governor of Pangasinan, one of the excerpts of his motion to the
court.
De Venecia cited his father former Speaker Jose de
Venecia was fined with P10,000 by the Sandiganbayan when he did not follow the graft
court’s suspension order against then Agusan del Sur Congressman Ceferino S.
Paredes, Jr. in 1997.
Majority leader Ilocos Norte Rep. Rudy Farinas cited
before media men that the August Chamber in its history has never implemented a
suspension order by the Sandigan to its members as the leadership insisted on
its power to discipline them.
The young De Venecia said he did not know what other measures the Speaker would be doing to placate the members of the graft court that insisted on the suspension of the two solons.
The young De Venecia said he did not know what other measures the Speaker would be doing to placate the members of the graft court that insisted on the suspension of the two solons.
Ako Bicol Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr. cited last month
that there was a consensus during the- all- party -caucus called by the Speaker
to protect the image of the House amid the suspension for graft of the duo.
“Definitely everything was consulted kasi iba ang
culture ngayon ng Congress very dynamic ang party. First time even na nagkaroon
ng all members to decide on such matter which Congressman Villafuerte and
Congressman Espino have been given a chance to defend their cases sa mga
members”.
Unlike the House of Representatives, the House of the
Senate in the past heeded the order of the Sandiganbayan when it ordered
Senators Ramon Revilla, Jr. Jinggoy Estrada, Juan Ponce Enrile, and JV
Ejercito suspended.
Meanwhile, Representative de Venecia said that pork
barrel was already a thing of the past.
“A congressman used to have a say before how to
spend the (seventy millions of pesos a year) pork allocated to him. He could
buy a car or construct a basketball court for some barangays, he could do them
all,” he spoke recently at the inauguration of the new Php 3.1 million multi-purpose covered
court in Barangay Guesang here.
Presently, he cited, all the projects that are included
in the eighty million pesos allocation yearly for a congressman have been
pre-approved by the executive department before Congress approved them.
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