The House leadership will push for the final approval of the death penalty bill next week despite being accused of turning the House into a “parliament of bullies and puppets.”
House Majority Floor Leader and Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo “Rudy” Fariñas rejected allegations that the leadership railroaded the passage of the highly controversial bill on second reading Wednesday night through voice voting.
“The House of Representatives exists to represent our people. The people want the death penalty reimposed as expressed thru their representatives in our caucuses and shown by them in our sessions, but a minor group against it has been bullying the majority from expressing its will,” Farinas said in an interview.
He said they even granted the request of the oppositors of the bill that it be considered only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
“Then, they would bully the majority by demanding that it stays in the session hall to listen to their arguments. How many times did they prevent themselves from supposedly expressing their views by questioning the quorum themselves?
They would not want to proceed with their interpellations if the majority of the members was not present to listen to them,” Fariñas said.
In its caucus last Monday, the majority decided to submit its final amendments and vote on the measure, he noted.
“Yet, we all saw how those against bullied the majority by introducing amendments that were outrightly unacceptable since they were irreconcilable with the death penalty. After such were rejected, they would appeal them to the Body and demand nominal voting on every question,” Fariñas said.
“It was high time for the majority to stand up to bullying tactics of a few members,” he added. (Charissa M. Luci)