Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco speaks to the media at the House of Representatives on Nov. 11, 2019. INQUIRER.net file photo / Daphne Galvez
MANILA, Philippines — Some supporters of Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano insulted Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco in front of the President for supposedly “betraying” the House leader, a lawmaker said Wednesday.
In an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel, Oriental Mindoro Rep. Doy Leachon, a supporter of Velasco, was asked to confirm if Velasco was indeed “insulted openly” by Cayetano’s supporters in front of President Rodrigo Duterte during their meeting on Tuesday night to discuss the speakership issue.
Citing her sources, host Karen Davila said these insults made Duterte “pity” Velasco.
Leachon said: “Yes, aaminin ko po. Totoo po ‘yun.” (Yes, I admit. That’s true.)
According to Leachon, Cayetano’s supporters claimed that Velasco betrayed the term-sharing agreement when he supposedly attempted to oust the speaker.
“[Sabi nila] na kahit gusto nilang sundin ang wish ng Pangulo at ang gentleman’s agreement ay si Cong. Lord daw ay nag betray. Kumbaga nagtaksil dahil may mga kudeta raw, na ako magsasabi sa harap ng Diyos at ng aking pamilya, walang katotohanan,” Leachon said.
(Even though they want to abide by the wish of the President and the gentleman’s agreement, it was Cong. Lord they say was the one who betrayed it. It was like a traitor because there were coup d’etat, but I swear to God and to my family, there was no truth to that.)
Leachon, however, said that he understands his colleagues since “they are fighting out a position.”
“Para sa akin, naiintindihan ko naman ‘yung mga kasamahan ko sa Kongreso. Para sa kanila, syempre, they are fighting out a position. Anybody in that matter, I can understand that,” Leachon said.
(For me, I understand my colleagues in the House. For them, of course they are fighting out a position.)
To recall, in February, Cayetano claimed that Velasco is promising chairmanship and budget allocation to members of the lower chamber, saying that he received “verified” information regarding an “attempt” to oust him as Speaker.
Velasco denied the alleged plan to oust Cayetano, saying that he would follow the term-sharing deal.
The speakership issue once again resurfaced during the Department of Public Works and Highways’ budget briefing when Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. questioned the distribution of funds between congressional districts, particularly those of Cayetano and Deputy Speaker Luis Raymund Villafuerte in Taguig City and Camarines Sur, respectively.
Teves belongs to the PDP-Laban party, Velasco’s political party, while Villafuerte is a known close ally of Cayetano.
While Teves has denied that his questions regarding the budget were not related to the speakership issue, the recent arguments over the proposed 2021 national budget nonetheless led many to question if this is related to the term-sharing agreement Cayetano and Velasco.