Rowegie Abanto

Speaker Martin Romualdez. Yummie Dingding, PPA pool/File

The Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), the political party of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., and LAKAS-CMD, where Speaker Martin Romualdez is affiliated, signed an alliance on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, at the Manila Polo Club in Makati City. According to PFP President Governor Reynaldo Tamayo of South Cotabato, half of all the governors in the country have joined the party, while one-third of the House of Representatives is affiliated with Lakas-CMD, making it a powerful bloc in the house. PFP and Lakas-CMD were part of the UniTeam alliance in 2022, which catapulted Marcos as the president with 31 million votes.

Yummie Dingding, PPA pool

Article (news)

Paige Javier

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/173908665106920240508-pfp-lakas-cmd-alliance-PPA-32.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Speaker Martin Romualdez. Yummie Dingding, PPA pool/File"/>Speaker Martin Romualdez. Yummie Dingding, PPA pool/File</div>MANILA — House leaders slammed the complaints to be filed against Speaker Martin Romualdez, former House Committee on Appropriations Chairperson Zaldy Co and House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe.Former House Speaker now Davao del Norte 1st District Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez, senatorial aspirants Atty. Jimmy Bondoc and Atty. Raul Lambino, Atty. Ferdinand Topacio and the non-government organization Citizens Crime Watch announced the move in a news forum on Saturday.They said t<a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/2/8/tiangco-no-pressure-to-sign-sara-duterte-impeachment-1921">hey would file a criminal case over the alleged insertions worth P241 billion in the 2025 budget</a>, which were supposedly not approved by Congress.Bondoc claimed all the elements of falsification of legislative documents is present.Alvarez cited the previously raised issue of supposed blanks in the Bicameral Conference Committee report on the national budget.In a statement on Sunday, Deputy Majority Leader Rep. Paolo Ortega and Assistant Majority Leader Rep. Jefferson Khonghun said the complaint to be filed is &quot;politically motivated&quot; and seeks to undermine House leadership.&quot;Walang basehan ang mga ito, another fantasy at fiction. Obvious na layunin nitong ilihis ang atensyon ng publiko mula sa tunay na isyu - ang impeachment trial ni VP [Sara] Duterte,&quot; Ortega said.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/2/9/-unique-vp-duterte-trial-could-raise-legal-question-for-sc-corona-defense-lawyer-1454">&#x27;Unique&#x27; VP Duterte trial could raise legal question for SC — Corona defense lawyer</a></div>Khonghun labeled the allegations against the House Speaker as &quot;an attempt to discredit the House&#x27;s overwhelming support&quot; for the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte.“This is nothing more than a desperate move to discredit the impeachment process,” he said.“Napaka-timing naman ng mga issue na ito. Nang maipadala na sa Senado ang impeachment complaint, biglang may ganitong aksyon laban kay Speaker Romualdez. Malinaw na diversionary tactic ito,” Khonghun added.He likewise stressed the importance of ensuring a fair and transparent process.Ortega said attempts to &quot;derail&quot; the impeachment trial through the filing of &quot;politically motivated&quot; cases would only backfire.“Kung inaakala nilang madidiskaril nila ang impeachment trial sa pamamagitan ng ganitong mga taktika, nagkakamali sila. Mas lalo lang nilang ipinapakita na takot silang humarap sa katotohanan,” he said.“The Senate must not be swayed by political distractions. The people demand transparency and accountability, and they will not be fooled by these diversionary tactics,” Ortega stressed.House Deputy Speaker Rep. David Suarez on Saturday questioned the timing of the filing of the case, but said Congress is ready to answer the claims.&quot;We welcome it. Kasi handa naman natin ipalinawag lahat ng nangyari sa budget process at wala namang tayong tinatago dahil alam naman natin naging legal ang proseso na pinatupad ng mababang kapulungan sa pagpapasa ng budget,&quot; he said.&quot;Kung titingnan lang natin yung timing, medyo nakakapagtaka bakit sila ay magfifile ng kaso ngayon. Ang totoong issue po ngayon ay yung impeachment ni Vice President Sara Duterte,&quot; Suarez added.The lawmaker pointed out that the personalities behind the impending case are allies of Vice President Sara Duterte and senatorial aspirants.Suarez also addressed the claim of Alvarez that he did not receive a copy of the enrolled bill despite several requests.&quot;Siguro dahil hindi sila pumapasok sa Congress. Kasi kami lahat may kopya kami ng enrolled bill. In fact, binotohan namin sa plenary eh,&quot; he explained.Suarez said it&#x27;s not only the majority but the &quot;supermajority&quot; calling for the impeachment of the Vice President.Some 215 lawmakers signed the complaint that impeached Duterte last Wednesday.Twenty-five members signed documents to add their names, raising the number to 240 complainants.The Office of the House Speaker said they have no statement yet on the matter.<div>RELATED VIDEO:</div><div><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JKS267g4Zbk?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe> </div>

House leaders slammed the complaints to be filed against Speaker Martin Romualdez, former House Committee on Appropriations Chairperson Zaldy Co and House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe.

House leaders slammed the complaints to be filed against Speaker Martin Romualdez, former House Committee on Appropriations Chairperson Zaldy Co and House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe.

Lawmakers: Possible complaint on alleged 2025 budget insertions 'diversionary tactics'

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Lawmakers: Possible complaint on alleged 2025 budget insertions 'diversionary tactics'

Paige Javier,

ABS-CBN News

Published Feb 09, 2025 04:14 PM PHT

Read More:

ABSNews

ANC promo

Paolo Ortega

Jefferson Khonghun

House Speaker Martin Romualdez

Zaldy Co

Manuel Dalipe

2025 National Budget

Budget Insertion

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