Recto on House squabble: ‘Tampuhan lang, it will pass’

FILE PHOTO: Deputy Speaker Ralph Recto. File photo from Senate PRIB

MANILA, Philippines — Deputy Speaker and Batangas 6th district Rep. Ralph Recto on Sunday said that the House leadership issue between Speaker Martin Romualdez and Pampanga 2nd district Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is just a temporary political rift and will eventually pass.

“This ‘political tampuhan [rift]’ shall pass. This is a tempest in a teacup that will not wash away a strong alliance between close partners who share a common vision of a prosperous and peaceful country,” Recto explained in a statement.

In a separate statement, Romualdez, on the other hand, addressed the rumors, saying there are more urgent matters to attend to rather than politicking.

“There is still much work to do, so occasional moves to destabilize the House should be nipped in the bud. The Uniteam, which the House leadership has always been a part of, must continue to focus on finding immediate solutions to problems of ordinary Filipinos,” Romualdez said.

Prior to this, Arroyo broke her silence and refuted the allegation that she was staging a coup and reiterated her support for Romualdez and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as one of her goals.

For his part, Recto said the administration has benefited from the working partnership of the two House leaders who provide “valuable counsel to the leader of the land.”

“The fog of miscommunication will soon clear, the vow of cooperation will be renewed, and attempts to drive a wedge between them shall have failed,” he said.

“This tandem is instrumental in the House’s prodigious output of bills and the vigilant exercise of its oversight powers,” Recto added.

Likewise, he said that the Congress is focused on finding solutions for the country and its locals.

“It [Congress] will not feast on intrigues. The uninformed will say that unity has cracked. Nothing is farther from the truth. No wound needs healing as none was inflicted,” he said.

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Arroyo breaks silence: My actions were misconstrued, I was accused of staging House coup

JPV