The House of Representatives entered the second regular session ahead of schedule in advancing the Marcos administration’s legislative priorities despite months of political controversies competing for public and congressional attention.
House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander ‘Sandro’ A. Marcos said the House, under the leadership of Speaker Faustino ‘Bojie’ G. Dy III, showed by its output during the first regular session that it remained focused on legislation intended to improve the lives of Filipinos.
The House approved 229 measures during the first regular session, including 66 national bills and 163 local measures, while completing action on 26 of the 52 priority proposals endorsed by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (Ledac).
‘And I think the fact that we’re ahead of schedule would say that I am satisfied with what’s been happening in the Lower House as of late and with the legislative performance,’ Marcos said during an ambush interview.
The chamber also transmitted more than 160 measures to the Senate, including proposals covering land use, digital payments, water governance, education, energy, nutrition and social protection.
Marcos explained that legislative output remains the fairest measure of whether a majority leader has effectively managed the work of the chamber.
‘The measure of performance of any majority leader is the legislative output of the House that it is elected in,’ Marcos stressed.
The majority leader emphasized that the number and quality of measures advanced by Congress should remain the central basis for judging its performance.
According to him, the House record showed that political disputes did not prevent committees and the plenary from processing measures included in the president’s legislative program.
‘I think it speaks volumes that, despite the political noise that we’ve been experiencing in the last few months, if not longer, Congress has still been able to exercise its functions as a legislative body and bring legislation that will help the people,’ Marcos said.
Marcos pledged that the House would build on its first regular session output and continue working on the remaining administration priorities in the coming months.