Still no House quorum despite Palace pep talk

PRESIDENT Aquino’s appears to have lost his political pull after the House of Representatives on Tuesday failed to muster a quorum just hours after the Chief Executive gave more than 150 lawmakers a talk on the need to attend the last session days of the year and pass the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

Deputy Speaker Roberto Puno declared Tuesday’s session adjourned at 5:45 p.m. after a roll call showed that only 134 of 290 House members were in attendance.

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr., however, expressed confidence there would be enough votes in the House to pass the BBL in January.

“My timetable is to complete the interpellation during this period (before adjournment on Dec. 18). Some of us might think we can do (pass) it in the next four days but I myself think that is not realistic. Eventually, since we have a number of days left in January, that is possible,” said Belmonte, in an interview just hours after House members were urged by President Aquino in Malacañang to pass the BBL.

Belmonte shrugged off fears of the government and MILF peace panels that the BBL must be approved before the end of the year or the measure would be as good as dead because the lawmakers would be focused on the elections in January.

“They probably think they are better than us here in Congress,” Belmonte said.

He said more than 150 people heard the President’s talk despite having received an invitation only the day before.

“It wasn’t a small crowd,” he said.

“The President batted for the BBL and the advantages we can get out of it. In this world of so much strife, we have a great opportunity to solve it when there are leaders of the MILF who are receptive to peace. His principal message was this was an opportunity we should not miss. It was a much applauded speech of the President,” Belmonte said.

He said he had spoken to several of the 21 lawmakers lined up to interpellate on the BBL who agreed to either shorten or drop their turns altogether. He was confident the House could at least end the period of interpellation which has dragged on since June.

Belmonte said there might not be any need to extend the sessions until Friday as long as the members attend and stay in the session hall to maintain a quorum.

He said Congress would give its “best effort” to muster a quorum in the final four session days of the year.

Belmonte said the House might finally pass the BBL by next month.