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Although President Duterte would prefer that the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alan Peter Cayetano, and the representative of Marinduque, Lord Allan Velasco, honor the shared term agreement that he negotiated last year, the decision should ultimately be left in Congressmen’s hands.
“He wants the two leaders to respect his words. However, if Representative Velasco doesn’t have the numbers, then the President can’t do anything about it, ”Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said Monday.
In a meeting with Senate and House leaders in Malacañang on September 16, the president made an enigmatic comment, “Kawawa naman si Lord (Pitiful Lord),” which drew mixed interpretations from the two camps.
Duterte had also said at the time that he could do nothing if Velasco could not muster enough support from congressmen, although he was again expected to act as mediator or kingmaker when he meets with both in Malacañang on Tuesday.
The Inquirer learned that the meeting would take place at 6 p.m.
Roque, however, could not confirm when it would take place, but said the president had “private meetings” scheduled for this week.
The meeting could make or break Velasco’s prospects in the face of an avalanche of support for Cayetano to remain as president of the 300-member chamber during a crucial period spanning the approval of the 2021 budget and amid the constraints of the COVID pandemic. -19.
Over the weekend, after the insistence on the Cayetano camp, different political blocs released several manifestos, including one signed by 202 members, supporting their retention and urging their rival to back down.
Under the terms of his “gentlemen’s agreement,” Cayetano is supposed to serve as president for the first 15 months and Velasco will assume office for the remaining 21 months of the 18th Congress.
In a Facebook post on Monday, Velasco appealed to Cayetano to honor his “pact” and showed photos of the two signing the pledge, along with the president and majority leader of the Chamber, Martín Romualdez.
“The pact was very clear: a 15-21 shared term agreement. The first term expires on September 30, after which the second term begins immediately, ”he said.
“That was the promise made to the president. As true leaders and as an example for our people, both parties are obliged to avoid situations or statements that would subvert the agreement and betray the trust of our people who have witnessed the agreement, ”he added.
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