<\/p>\n
Leyte 1st district Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez on Wednesday resigned as Speaker of the House of Representatives.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Romualdez stepped down from the post to give way to an independent investigation into alleged anomalies in flood control projects.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n He was replaced by I<\/strong>sabela 6th<\/sup> district Rep. Faustino “Bojie” Dy III.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cToday, with a full heart and a clear conscience, I tender my resignation as Speaker of the House of Representatives. I do this so that the Independent Commission on Infrastructure may pursue its mandate freely and fully \u2014 without doubt, without interference, and without undue influence,\u201d Romualdez said in his speech before the plenary.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Romualdez, along with former House Appropriations chair now Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co and othe<\/strong>r <\/strong><\/em>lawmakers and government officials, were implicated in the alleged corruption in flood control projects.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThe longer I stay, the heavier that burden grows \u2014 on me, on this House, and on the President I have always sought to support. And so, after deep reflection and prayer, I have made the decision,\u201d Romualdez said.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cLet the truth emerge, and let justice be done,\u201d he added.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Leyte solon strongly denied any involvement in flood control budget mess.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n “I step down not in surrender, but in service. For sometimes, the greatest act of leadership is the grace to let it go,” he said.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Dy, who garnered 253 votes , was elected as Romualdez’s successor. Twenty-eight lawmakers abstained from the vote, four did not vote, and none registered a negative vote.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n According to the Isabela solon, under his leadership, the \u201cHouse will change.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n “I will not defend the guilty. I will not shield the corrupt,” he said.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n “Mayroon po kaming pagkukulang. Kami po ay nagpapakumbaba sa inyo. Nakikiusap po kami na sana ay bigyan n’yo kami ng pagkakataong ituwid ang mga maling kalakaran at linisin ang aming hanay,” the Isabela solon said.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n PALACE WELCOMES NEW HOUSE LEADER, THANKS <\/strong>ROMUALDEZ<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Malaca\u00f1ang on Wednesday said it looks forward to working with the newly elected Speaker who takes the helm of the House of Representatives as the public calls for visible results to address the people\u2019s concerns.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n In a statement issued by the Presidential Communications Office (PCO), the Palace expressed gratitude to Romualdez for his contributions in advancing the Bagong Pilipinas legislative agenda of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThe President recognizes the vital role of the House of Representatives, especially at a time when the public demands visible results and Congress is called upon to take active steps that address people\u2019s concerns and deliver real improvements in daily life,\u201d Malaca\u00f1ang said in a statement.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Malaca\u00f1ang said it respected the independence of the House of Representatives, as it reiterated its commitment to engage all lawmakers in \u201cconstructive collaboration\u201d for the benefit of Filipino families and the nation.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cWe respect the independence of the chamber and acknowledge the contributions of former Speaker Martin Romualdez. We now look forward to working with Speaker Faustino Dy III to advance measures that strengthen the economy, ensure basic services, and protect our democracy,\u201d the Palace statement said.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThe administration remains committed to constructive collaboration with all lawmakers to keep the focus on the needs of Filipino families and move the nation forward,\u201d the statement also said<\/strong>. |<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Leyte 1st district Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez on Wednesday resigned as Speaker of the House of Representatives. Romualdez stepped down from the post to give<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16426,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,17],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16425"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16425"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16425\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16427,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16425\/revisions\/16427"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journaldailynewsonline.com.ph\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}