Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 8) — A party leader on Wednesday said he sees more members of the House of Representatives moving from their political party as issues hound the lower chamber.
“We always toe the line with regards to the direction of the leadership…I’m sure that in the coming weeks there will be more shifting or political alignments,” Surigao del Sur 2nd District Rep. Johnny Pimentel told CNN Philippines’ The Source.
Pimentel leads the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban).
On Monday, Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr. resigned from PDP-Laban over former President Rodrigo Duterte’s “rotten” remark against the House. Gonzales then filed House Resolution 1414 intended to dispel supposed threats against the lower chamber.
Over 300 lawmakers, including representatives from various political parties, also affirmed their support for Speaker Martin Romualdez following Duterte’s criticisms.
According to Pimentel, PDP-Laban currently has 27 members — down from 65 when Congress opened. Meanwhile, the dominant party Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats or Lakas-CMD headed by Romualdez increased its members to 75 from just around 20.
