Belmonte stays as Speaker if I win, says Roxas

Speaker Sonny Belmonte. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

SPEAKER Feliciano Belmonte Jr. can be assured of keeping his post under a Mar Roxas presidency.

Roxas, the Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer, gave the assurance to Belmonte during the latter’s 79th birthday party at the House of Representatives last Friday, Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II narrated.

“When he (Roxas) was asked to say a few words, he said he (Belmonte) would remain Speaker” if Roxas was elected President, Gonzales told a press briefing on Tuesday.

Gonzales said that Belmonte only chuckled in response.

Earlier, Belmonte, a vice chair of the ruling LP, had pushed for Sen. Grace Poe to be the vice presidential candidate of the party. Poe, however, turned the overtures down and announced her own run for the presidency with Sen. Francis Escudero as her running mate.

Belmonte then revealed that the camp of Poe and Escudero had tried to get him to their side.

Tuesday, Belmonte said Roxas was now pretty much even with Poe, who leads voter preference surveys.

“We have a long way to go but, definitely, all this time, we had always thought Poe-Chiz was very strong over everybody, but now, they are all just about the same. The next few months will spell the difference,” he said.

Roxas has surged in both Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia surveys on the heels of President Aquino’s endorsement of Roxas as his chosen successor in July.

The House Majority Leader acknowledged that other House members could be interested in the Speakership, but it would not be a simple matter to wrest Belmonte’s post from him.

Belmonte’s leadership of the 291-strong chamber has been instrumental in maintaining the majority coalition under the Aquino government.

Among the lawmakers reportedly interested in being Speaker is Negros Occidental Rep. Alfredo Benitez, the fourth richest congressman and an influential Visayas politician.

“I don’t know if part of his future plans is to gun for Speaker,” Gonzales said of Benitez, who almost quit LP due to differences with Roxas but was prevailed upon to stay by the latter’s mother.

Who wins the Speakership shall ultimately depend “on which party will dominate the elections,” he said. “Definitely, I think more LP lawmakers will win. We have a more complete slate from up to bottom,” he added.

As for former Sen. Manuel Villar, who is reportedly also interested in returning to the House, Gonzales said: “If he returns, he must be able to develop that closeness with the vast majority of congressmen, between now and next Congress.”

He added that the same was true for Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco, who was named by Vice President Jejomar Binay as his choice for Speaker if he won the presidency.

“As I’ve said, you can’t just get endorsement of the President. You must have the acceptance of other members of House. You have to show you are able to rise above the rest as the Speaker,” Gonzales said.