Makabayan files reso urging House to resume face-to-face plenary sessions
MANILA, Philippines — The Makabayan bloc has filed a resolution urging the House of Representatives to return to face-to-face plenary sessions to ensure that the people’s right to transparency when deliberating critical measures is protected.
Lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc led by Alliance of Concerned Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro filed House Resolution (HR) No. 859 on Tuesday, urging the House to resume physical attendance at the plenary, especially since students have gone back to physical classes.
According to Castro, and other Makabayan solons Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas and Kabataan party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel, it is embarrassing that lawmakers are still given the privilege to work remotely during the plenary session while children are asked to physically attend classes.
“It is unfortunate and ironic that while the country has mandated all school-age children from the youngest Kindergarten pupil to the oldest college student and all workers and employees in public and private offices and workplaces to return to pre-pandemic face-to-face reporting, this is not so with the Members of the House of Representatives,” Makabayan said in HR No. 859
“To date, the House is still implementing Rule XII entitled ‘Conduct of Plenary Sessions through Electronic Platforms’, which it began to implement during the 18th Congress when the number of COVID cases are still high and many areas are in Alert Levels 3 to 5 (high to alarming case counts),” they added.
Most pupils and students have returned to classes for the 2022 to 2023 school year, which started last August — after COVID-19 cases went down drastically.
READ: Face-to-face classes back, but can these reduce 91% learning poverty in PH?
According to Castro, lawmakers can represent their constituents better if they are actually physically present at the plenary hall inside the Batasan Pambansa complex in Quezon City.
“Di ba medyo nakakahiya na ang mga batang paslit ay naka-face-to-face na mula pa nung isang taon habang ang mga kinatawan naman ay naka-zoom pa din?!” Castro lamented.
(Isn’t that quite shameful that children are doing face-to-face classes since last year but lawmakers are still on video conferencing?)
“Mas mahusay sanang marerepresenta ng mga kinatawan ang mga naghalal sa kanila kung sila mismo ay nasa plenaryo at kasama sa mga debate at diskusyon sa mga panukalang batas at mga isyu na kinakaharap ng bayan,” she added. “Sana ay pakinggan ito ng liderato ng Kamara upang mas malaman din ng mamamayan ang nangyayari sa loob mismo ng Batasan.”
(Lawmakers can represent their constituents better if they themselves are inside the plenary and part of the debates and discussions regarding proposed laws and issues faced by the country. We hope the House leadership would heed this call so that people would know what is happening inside the Batasan complex.)
While this is the first time that a formal resolution was filed calling on lawmakers to attend the plenary session physically, there have been several instances where Minority lawmakers like Makabayan bloc members and Albay 1st District Rep. Edcel Lagman lamented the lack of warm bodies when deliberating controversial measures.
During the discussions on Resolution of Both Houses No. 6 which calls for the creation of a constitutional convention to amend the 1987 Constitution, Rep. ±Manuel made a manifestation, urging lawmakers to be present for the nominal voting on the said measure.
Manuel said that it would be better if the bills and proposals are discussed and voted upon with lawmakers present in the plenary.
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