Nacionalista Party officially expresses support for Velasco leadership
Las Piñas City Rep. Camille Villar, a leader of the Nacionalista Party, confirmed yesterday that the NP, the political party of former House speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, expressed its unequivocal support to the leadership of newly installed Speaker Lord Allan Velasco.
“The party extends its helping hand to the new House leadership and vows to work closely with their team to ensure the success of the President’s legislative and economic agenda,” she said on behalf of her father, former Senate president Manny Villar, who heads the NP that has 44 House members and had previously supported partymate Cayetano, who was ousted as speaker on Oct. 12.
“NP remains steadfast in supporting the legislative agenda of the President as his government endeavors
to bring solution to the problems of the country, especially now that we are in the middle of the pandemic,” she said in a statement.
“With a robust leadership backed by a pro-active Cabinet, we believe that the country is in a better position to rise from the challenges of this pandemic and ultimately, facilitate the delivery of the cure against COVID-19,” Villar said.
Villar’s pronouncement was also corroborated by another NP stalwart Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, chairman of the House committee on dangerous drugs.
“The fight is over, and now since the dust has settled so to speak, then let’s move forward. We were not privy to their ( Velasco and Cayetano and Duterte) meeting, but whatever it is, our members are throwing our support for Speaker Velasco,” he told reporters.
NP, the political party founded by the Laurel family, also supported Duterte in his campaign to weed out corruption.
“The NP, along with my esteemed House colleagues in the party, also commits to the speedy passage of the 2021 national budget that would be truly reflective of the needs of the people and not merely based on the requirements of the districts,” Villar said.
Velasco, who took over as Speaker in a tumultuous event due to Cayetano’s refusal to leave his post, now has the support of the super majority coalition in the chamber, where he even met members of the House opposition bloc Wednesday.
Members of the 47-strong National Unity Party (NUP) also met Velasco on Wednesday afternoon, after which the political party threw its support behind the leadership of the new Speaker.
Lakas-CMD, which has 37 House members, also backed Velasco’s leadership.
Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, Lakas-CMD president, will keep his post as House majority leader as part of the agreement.
This effectively cements the support Velasco will get from the administration coalition led by President Duterte’s PDP-Laban where the Nationalist Peoples’ Coalition, the Party-list Coalition Foundation and Liberal Party have thrown their support behind the current leadership.
The once-powerful LakasCMD that was founded by former presidents Fidel Ramos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has about 37 members, PDPLaban has at least 57, the late tycoon Danding Cojuangco’s NPC has around 30, PCFI has 54 members while LP has about 17.
Lawmakers also vowed to pass the measure granting President Duterte powers to cut bureaucratic red tape, as soon as Malacañang certifies the bill urgent.
“Upon the directive of the President and the instruction of Speaker Velasco, the House will work on the passage of the anti-red tape measure before we adjourn the special session,” said Romualdez.
House Bill 7884, which is expected to be passed by the plenary on third and final reading today seeks to streamline the issuance of licenses and permits during national emergencies.
Velasco and Romualdez filed the bill on Wednesday, titled “An Act Authorizing the President to Expedite the Processing and Issuance of National and Local Permits, Licenses, and Certifications.”
The measure intends to accelerate the country’s socioeconomic recovery and ensure an effective government response to the present health crisis that has gripped the nation and has resulted in a recession.