LP sees same ‘tyranny of majority’ in next Congress

The Liberal Party (LP) sees a repeat of the “tyranny of numbers” in the coming 18th Congress as the opposition party prepares to deal with the looming supermajority of pro-administration lawmakers.

Quezon City Rep. Kit Belmonte, however, said LP members were unfazed by the prospect despite their small number in the House of Representatives and would continue to fight for the party’s values.

“[This] means [we] can expect the same tyranny from the supermajority. The Liberals and [their] allies will continue to stand for our values,” he said.

18 ‘winning’ LP members

Belmonte said the LP expected 18 of its candidates to secure seats in the House, three more than the number in the previous Congress.

“We may be few, but we will keep on fighting. The battle between what is wrong and right is not dictated merely by the number of House members’ raised hands,” he said.

Controversy marred the designation of the minority leader in the previous Congress after Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo unseated Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez in a House coup.

Arroyo and the new House leaders designated Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez as minority leader despite voting for Alvarez’s ouster.

LP members had formed an alliance with members of the militant Makabayan bloc supposedly to form the House minority, only to be overturned by other lawmakers loyal to Suarez. —MELVIN GASCON