A congressman in favor of ousting Philippine House Speaker Jose C. De Venecia on Monday afternoon moved to declare the House Speaker's post vacant soon after the Congress resumed, trying to push forward the change of House leadership within the day.
The vacancy declaration by Abraham Kahlil Mitra broke the agreement made hours before at a multi-party meeting, chaired by Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, which concluded that the speakership voting should be postponed to Tuesday.
There were 212 congressmen and congresswomen present when Mitrabrought the motion on the floor. Mitra is one of reportedly 150 congressmen who signed the manifesto declaring a loss of confidence on Speaker Jose de Venecia, local television network ABS-CBN News said.
In an interview with the television, Mitra said though leaders of various parties previously agreed to postpone the voting the majority of ordinary party members wanted to have De Venecia ousted on Monday, the first day the lower House resumed this week.
If the motion is approved, an actual voting for the speakership post will follow.
According to Philippine congress rules, replacement of the Speaker needs the backing of 121 House members.
Congressman Prospero Nograles was recommended to take De Venecia's post once he was voted out.
The latest campaign to oust De Venecia was spearheaded Arroyo's two congressmen sons and members of her party Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) in the lower House last week.
De Venecia, now on his fifth term as House Speaker until 2010, is the president of Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats, the largest bloc in the ruling coalition. He was known as a staunch supporter of Arroyo but their relations turned sour when De Venecia's son openly implicated Arroyo's husband in a bribing scandal.
Supporters of the incomer Speaker in the lower House rapped at the opposition's ousting plan as a move solely aimed at seeking political and family revenges, instead of something that is needed to make the country better.
De Venecia's opponents in the House, however, claimed that they wanted the Speaker gone for his inability to bring about reforms to the Congress not for his splitting from Arroyo.
Source:Xinhua
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