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Rep. Gina Reyes still Marinduque solon —Belmonte


Despite saying that the House of Representatives is still “studying” the issue of the disputed congressional seat for the lone district of Marinduque, House Speaker Sonny Belmonte on Thursday said that as of the moment, Rep. Regina "Gina" Reyes remains the province’s representative.
 
“Si Reyes ang kinatawan ng Marinduque,” Belmonte said during a press conference.
 
However, Belmonte could not say when the House of Representatives will be able to form an opinion on the matter, citing the tight schedule of the House to pass the proposed National Spending bill for 2014.
 
“We're still studying it. Pero pretty soon. Pinag-iisipan pa namin. Pero we stand by na the HRET [House of Representative Electoral Tribunal] is the sole tribunal [for declared representatives. 'Yun lang naman,” he said.
 
Earlier, the Supreme Court decided that Rep. Regina Ongsiako-Reyes should have been disqualified in last May's congressional race for being an American citizen. Last week, the High Court ruled with finality to deny Reyes' second motion for reconsideration that sought to reverse the high court's earlier ruling upholding her disqualification.
 
The SC’s decision favors Reyes’ opponent, Lord Allan Jay Velasco, son of SC Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco.
 
But Belmonte has since insisted that the House needs to wait on the decision of the HRET to determine their next course of action.
 
The 1987 Constitution created the HRET and gave it a mandate to have sole jurisdiction on cases of electoral protests if the protest was filed after the proclamation of the winner.
 
Letters
 
In a separate development, Velasco has sent House Speaker Belmonte a letter expressing his request that Reyes’ name be removed from the roll of House members, and that his name be substituted.
 
“I again reiterate my request that the name of Regina O. Reyes be removed from the roll of members of the House and that my name instead be registered as the duly elected member of the House of Representatives. Lastly, I request that I be allowed to assume the position at the earliest possible time to prevent prejudice to the interests of his constituents in Marinduque,” Velasco said in a letter dated December 10.
 
Velsaco added that Reyes should not have been able to run in the first place, with her limitations as an American citizen.
 
“Simply put, Ms. Reyes should not have been proclaimed in first place as there was already a final determination that Ms. Reyes was a non-candidate during the May 2013 Elections, a non-resident of Marinduque and an American citizen,” he said.
 
But when asked about Velasco’s letter, Belmonte merely replied that Reyes has also sent her own letter.
 
“The other party's lawyer [Reyes] wrote a letter also,” he said.
 
Meanwhile, another solon has manifested support for Reyes as the Marinduque representative, noting that the SC’s decision encroaches on the jurisdiction of the HRET.
 
Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali has filed House Resolution No 597 entitled “Urgent Resolution Reiterating Adherence to the time-honored principle on the exclusivity of jurisdiction of the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal overall contests relating to the election, returns and qualifications of its members to preserve the integrity, dignity and reputation of the House of Representatives and its members.”
 
In his resolution, Umali said there was a need to comply with the rules which state the HRET has jurisdiction over Reyes’ case.
 
“There is an urgent need to observe strict compliance on the exclusive of jurisdiction of the HRET over all contests relating to the election returns and qualifications of its members to clarify and express without doubt the relationship among the Comelec, Supreme Court and the HRET,” he said. —KG, GMA News
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