House Speaker Sonny Belmonte. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. on Wednesday said that he is in favor of the Senate’s plans to move from Pasay City to Quezon City.
He told reporters during an interview while inspecting the House ahead of President Benigno Aquino III’s third State of the Nation Address (SONA) that “the senators should come over to Quezon City” as “[t]hey’re too far over there [and it’s a] difficult jump [for coordination].”
But setting up office within the compound of the House of Representatives may not be an option.
He said that the Senate might need a larger space due to their many meetings and the large volume of people who come to speak with senators.
The senators are eyeing a space near the University of the Philippines Diliman compound.
Asked to comment on the possibility of frequent rallies once the Senate sets up office near UP – possibly along Commonwealth Avenue – Belmonte said that protests were “part of the democratic process.”