Rep. Lord Allan Velasco said on Friday that President Duterte was angered and felt hoodwinked by Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano when the Taguig congressman forestalled a term-sharing deal with the Marinduque lawmaker by offering to resign and then rallying his supporters to reject it.
Velasco said the President expressed his sentiments to him when they spoke on Monday about Cayetano鈥檚 鈥渞esignation鈥� last week. Then on Oct. 6, the Speaker鈥檚 premature suspension of sessions prevented the election of a new House leader and also aborted further budget deliberations.
In an interview with ANC, Velasco said he saw the President visibly angry and quoted Mr. Duterte telling him: 鈥淗indi lamang ikaw ang napahiya dito, tayong dalawa (It wasn鈥檛 just you who was embarassed here, it was the two of us.).鈥�
鈥淎ctually 鈥� the President used the word, 鈥楲ord, nadenggoy tayong dalawa (we were both duped),鈥� he said.
In the original 鈥済entleman鈥檚 agreement鈥� brokered by the President himself, Cayetano was to serve as Speaker from July 2019 to October this year and Velasco would take over for the remaining 21 months until a new Congress takes over after the 2022 polls.
Lord Allan Velasco
Claim of fresh mandate
When there were indications that the deal would not be upheld, the two men and a few of their key allies met with the President, and the two sides agreed that the budget would be passed on Oct. 14 followed by Velasco鈥檚 takeover in an election.
But on Sept. 30, Cayetano waylaid the deal by offering to resign in order, he said, to give Velasco the chance to succeed him. When House members voted 184-1 to reject his resignation, the Speaker鈥檚 camp claimed he was given a fresh mandate and the term-sharing deal was deemed scrapped.
But Velasco denounced Cayetano鈥檚 actions, saying they were intended to advance the Speaker鈥檚 political ambitions in 2022.
鈥淟ook at how he made a mess of the entire budget process. Why? Because out of fear, I think. Speaker Cayetano is doing everything just to be able to achieve his personal ambition and interest in being President in 2022,鈥� Velasco said.
鈥淗e is prioritizing his political survival before the survival of our country,鈥� he said.
A presidential aspirant would have a big advantage over his rivals if he were serving as Speaker during an election year.
Without specifying what he would do, the President on Thursday threatened to step in to save the P4.5-trillion proposed budget for 2021 if the House failed to resolve the leadership crisis after Cayetano terminated plenary debates on the budget and suspended the session a full week ahead of schedule.
Alan Peter Cayetano
Lost time
The House leadership set the resumption of session on Nov. 16, prompting a warning from senators that they would lose a month鈥檚 time for budget deliberation which would 鈥渃ertainly lead鈥� to a reenacted budget for 2021.
Shortly after Mr. Duterte made his threat, Cayetano issued a statement on Facebook, apologizing to the President and the nation 鈥渇or adding anxiety to an already uncertain situation鈥� and assuring Malaca帽ang that the budget would be passed on time.
鈥淎s a matter of detail, we will submit the printed budget to the Senate on Nov. 5, allowing them to proceed with their hearings, and preparing the way for the formal transmittal on Nov. 16, immediately after Congress votes and approves on third reading the 2021 General Appropriations Bill,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e likewise assure the President that all the actions that we have taken are legal, constitutional, and in line with time-honored precedence in the House,鈥� Cayetano said. 鈥淣either I nor the other members of Congress will sacrifice the budget in this critical time, for political expediency.鈥�