1Pacman party-list Rep. Michael Romero, president of the Party-list Coalition Foundation Inc., yesterday confirmed that he has signed the manifesto of support for the speakership bid of Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco, stressing that he has been granted by the second largest political bloc in the House the blanket authority to do so.
“Tonight we will ratify what I signed,” Romero said as he called for a meeting of the PCFI last night.
In a resolution signed by PCFI members on June 19, the organization affirmed Romero’s role as their representative “for any speakership-related representation.”
In the same resolution, the party-list bloc declared: “That we, all 54 members of PCFI, will vote for Speakership in the 18th Congress as a bloc with a single and common choice, both individually and collectively.”
The PCFI also stressed that it was its intention to “wholly support the choice of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte for Speakership, should he, through Sen. Bong Go and or Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, publicly endorse a Speaker aspirant for the 18th Congress.”
Romero was among the signatories of the “Multi-Party Manifesto of Support” declaring Velasco as their choice for House Speaker.
“We are firmly convince that Rep. Lord Allan Jay Q. Velasco is imbued with the leadership qualities to steer and united the entire House of Representatives in the passage of crucial legislative reforms in support of the legislative agenda of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte in order to safeguard the country’s economic gains and social progress,” the manifesto said.
The signatories also stressed that the elected speaker of the House should “serve a full term to completely realize his Excellency’s legislative agenda.”
Aside from Romero, signing the manifesto were Reps. Aurelio Gonzales, executive vice president of PDP-Laban; Michael John Duavit and Wesley Gatchalian of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, and Kristine Singson Meehan, representing the Northern Luzon Alliance. (Ben Rosario)
