Most important vote on speakership not in House, says Toby Tiangco

Any move to change the leadership in the House of Representatives needs the approval of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr., Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco said on Tuesday.

Tiangco made the remark after the House suspended its session early amid reports that Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Marcos's cousin, was about to be replaced.

“Alam naman natin ang realidad ng Speakership. Wala naman ‘yung pinaka-importanteng boto dito sa loob ng House of Representatives," Tiangco told reporters when asked if those who wanted to unseat Romualdez had the numbers to do so.

"Let’s accept that fact. The most important vote is not inside the House of Representatives,” he added.

(We know the reality about Speakership. The most important vote is not inside the House.)

”Walang gagalaw rito out of respect roon sa Malacañang. I mean, ‘yun naman iniintay ng lahat, di ba? Siyempre lahat naman kami, we are supportive of the President, so, ayaw naman namin gumalaw ng, sa tingin namin na, hindi pa pwede,” Tiangco said.

(Nobody will move here out of respect for Malacañang. That is all we have been waiting for, right? We are supportive of the President, so we won’t make a move if we think it is not yet time.)

'The die is cast'

Another ranking House leader, who refused to be named due to lack of authority to speak on the matter, said the President met Romualdez and House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos of Ilocos Norte on Tuesday afternoon and that “the die is cast.”

One of the reported replacements for Romualdez is Isabela Representative Bojie Dy, who belongs to Marcos’s Partido Federal ng Pilipinas.

Romualdez, on the other hand, is the cousin of President Marcos, Jr. and the President of the ruling party Lakas-CMD, which has over 104 House members.

Sought for comment, Dy’s office responded “no comment for now.” 

Meanwhile, Dasmariñas Representative Francisco Barzaga said on Tuesday that he will take the Speakership from Romualdez.

“I hope Majority Leader Sandro Marcos won’t hold it against me and won’t stand in my way,” Barzaga said.

“I have talked to a lot of House members, and got mixed reactions. Some are open to it, some are supportive, and some wish to continue supporting Speaker Romualdez. We’re getting the numbers. We have one, two now—maybe?,” Barzaga added. –NB/RF, GMA Integrated News