Duterte ally Pantaleon Alvarez elected as Speaker of 17th Congress

Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez was elected the House Speaker of the 17th Congress after clinching the votes of an overwhelming majority of his colleagues.

With 251 lawmakers voting in his favor, the partymate of President Rodrigo Duterte from the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Laban ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) clinched the top House post following a three-way fight with Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez and Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat.

Baguilat, a last-minute choice of some lawmakers who chose not to join the supermajority coalition, came in second with eight votes.

Suarez, said to be Alvarez's preferred candidate for minority leader, got seven votes.

A total of 21 lawmakers abstained from voting while Navotas City Rep. Toby Tiangco registered a "no" vote, meaning he didn't want to choose from among the candidates for speakership. 

The House of Representatives opened its session at 10 a.m. —  frist, the singing of the national anthem and roll call. This was followed by the opening of nominations for speakership.

Former House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. nominated Alvarez for the position, saying he and the Liberal Party are throwing their support behind the Davao del Norte lawmaker's leadership.

Belmonte's nomination was seconded by representatives from PDP-Laban, Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC), National Unity Party (NUP), and Nacionalista Party (NP).

Alvarez's oath as Speaker was administered by Ang Kabuhayan party-list Rep. Dennis Laogan, the youngest member of the 17th Congress at 25 years old.

'Roll up our sleeves and work'

In his first speech as House Speaker, Alvarez urged his colleagues to “roll up our sleeves and get to work” for the passage of the priority measures of the Duterte administration.

“Let us embrace change. Let us be instruments of change,” he said.

While Duterte won the mandate to lead the country, he said the President cannot effect change alone.

Addressing his colleagues, the Speaker said: "We must give the President the necessary legislation which will be his tool to effect meaningful and genuine change."

Among the most important bills that the Speaker wants to pass are the proposal to revise the Constitution in preparation for a shift to a federal system, the lowering of the age of criminal responsibility from 15 to 9, and the reimposition of death penalty.

Following Alvarez's election as House Speaker, lawmakers also elected the following as Deputy Speakers: Reps. Eric Singson of Ilocos Sur, Fredenil Castro of Capiz, Mercedes Alvarez of Negros Occidental, Raneo Abu of Batangas and Romero Quimbo of Marikina City. — RSJ, GMA News