Bacolod City – The name of Bacolod elect Representative Alfredo Abelardo Benitez is being floated as among the possible candidates for the House speakership, as the Commission on Elections recently declared the Negros based Abang Lingkod partylist as among the winning party list groups in the country.
Negros Occidental Board Member Manuel Frederick Ko is the number one nominee of Abang Lingkod partylist group, replacing Representative Joseph Stephen Paduano, who is expected to finish his third term on June 30.
He brings again to seven the numbers of solons who will represent Negros Occidental at the House of Representatives. The other Negros Occidental solons, aside from Albee Benitez and Ko, are Julio Ledesma IV (1st district), Alfredo Marañon III (2nd district), Javier Miguel Benitez (3rd district), Jeffrey Ferrer (4th district), Emilio Bernardino Yulo (5th district), and Mercedes Alvarez (6th district).
Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson welcomed reports that Benitez is being considered as a possible candidate for the Speakership.
“That would be great. Could you imagine if somebody from Negros Occidental will actually sit down as Speaker,” the governor said.
“I don’t see any Negrense will be against that. We’re hoping it can happen. But we’re just here to sit down and relax, and see what happens at the start of the 20th Congress,” Lacson said.
During his term as congressman of the Negros Occidental 3rd district, Albee Benitez led the “Visayan Bloc”. He was also reported as one of the prime movers of the ouster of Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez as House Speaker, which installed former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo as the replacement.
Vice President Sara Duterte has encouraged his brother, Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte, to seek either the House speakership or the minority leadership at the House of Representatives.
According to Deputy Speaker David Suarez, House Speaker Martin Romualdez has a “supermajority” in the 20th Congress, with not less than 240 members having already signed a manifesto of support. (Gilbert Bayoran via tvds photo by tvds)
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