GMA Brandtalk
Tracking
Archives
ADVERTISEMENT
Filtered By: Topstories
News
Belmonte retains House speakership
By PATRICIA DENISE CHIU, GMA News
+
Make this your preferred source to get more updates from this publisher on Google.
(Updated 12:35 p.m.) Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. was voted speaker of the House of Representatives Monday, the same position he held during the 15th Congress.
President Benigno Aquino III has personally endorsed Belmonte, his partymate in the Liberal Party, for the position.
A total of 267 House members attended the special session Monday in preparation for Aquino’s fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), with Belmonte garnering 245 votes. There are 292 total available seats for the House.
Only Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco abstained during the election for House speakership.
“Today I am humbled by your vote of confidence. We will always stand strong and unified in our resolve, to move towards our great future,” Belmonte said following his oath-taking. “Before you I pledge to honor your trust and uphold the energy of this assembly as a democratic assembly.”
Other than holding the speakership from 2010 to 2013, Belmonte also held the position briefly in 2001.
Dynamic speaker
Western Samar Rep. Mel Senen Sarmiento nominated Belmonte.
“The 15th Congress was an active partner of the administration in achieving these milestones that spurned the momentum for the country’s economic growth,” he said in his speech nominating Belmonte.
“We need well crafted and significant legislation. To do so we need a determined and wise leadership. We need a Speaker in the House who is dynamic enough. We need a Speaker who is not afraid to ask questions and to say no if necessary. We need a Speaker who is familiar with the working of Local Governments,” he added.
In seconding the motion for Belmonte’s nomination, several congressmen praised Belmonte’s sound leadership as one of the reasons for the Aquino administration’s many economic and policy gains
“He was able to enact for three consecutive years the General Appropriations Act before the start of the fiscal year,” Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas pointed out.
Contenders
Meanwhile, San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez were also nominated alongside Belmonte.
Taguig Rep. Lino Cayetano nominated Zamora.
“We need leadership that is independent of the Palace,” Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said in his speech seconding Zamora’s nomination
Meanwhile, Surigao del Sur Rep. Philip A. Pichay nominated Romualdez.
Romualdez got 16 votes while Zamora secured 18 votes, making him the automatic head of the minority bloc in the chamber.
Camiguin Rep. Xavier Jesus Romualdo administered the oath for Belmonte.
The Senate and House of Representatives will convene in an congressional joint assembly for Aquino’s SONA in the afternoon at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City. — KBK, GMA News
President Benigno Aquino III has personally endorsed Belmonte, his partymate in the Liberal Party, for the position.
A total of 267 House members attended the special session Monday in preparation for Aquino’s fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), with Belmonte garnering 245 votes. There are 292 total available seats for the House.
Only Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco abstained during the election for House speakership.
“Today I am humbled by your vote of confidence. We will always stand strong and unified in our resolve, to move towards our great future,” Belmonte said following his oath-taking. “Before you I pledge to honor your trust and uphold the energy of this assembly as a democratic assembly.”
Other than holding the speakership from 2010 to 2013, Belmonte also held the position briefly in 2001.
Dynamic speaker
Western Samar Rep. Mel Senen Sarmiento nominated Belmonte.
“The 15th Congress was an active partner of the administration in achieving these milestones that spurned the momentum for the country’s economic growth,” he said in his speech nominating Belmonte.
“We need well crafted and significant legislation. To do so we need a determined and wise leadership. We need a Speaker in the House who is dynamic enough. We need a Speaker who is not afraid to ask questions and to say no if necessary. We need a Speaker who is familiar with the working of Local Governments,” he added.
In seconding the motion for Belmonte’s nomination, several congressmen praised Belmonte’s sound leadership as one of the reasons for the Aquino administration’s many economic and policy gains
“He was able to enact for three consecutive years the General Appropriations Act before the start of the fiscal year,” Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas pointed out.
Contenders
Meanwhile, San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez were also nominated alongside Belmonte.
Taguig Rep. Lino Cayetano nominated Zamora.
“We need leadership that is independent of the Palace,” Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said in his speech seconding Zamora’s nomination
Meanwhile, Surigao del Sur Rep. Philip A. Pichay nominated Romualdez.
Romualdez got 16 votes while Zamora secured 18 votes, making him the automatic head of the minority bloc in the chamber.
Camiguin Rep. Xavier Jesus Romualdo administered the oath for Belmonte.
The Senate and House of Representatives will convene in an congressional joint assembly for Aquino’s SONA in the afternoon at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City. — KBK, GMA News
More Videos
Most Popular
