REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila FIFTEENTH CONGRESS Second Regular Session Joint Resolution No. 30

Introduced by Kabataan Partylist Representative RAYMOND V. PALATINO

RESOLUTION STRONGLY URGING THE LEADERSHIP OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND OF THE SENATE TO CONDUCT DAILY PLENARY SESSIONS ON MONDAYS THROUGH THURSDAYS DURING REGULAR SESSION PERIODS IN ORDER TO ADDRESS MORE CONCERNS AND ISSUES OF THE PEOPLE THROUGH LEGISLATIVE WORK AND TO REGULARLY DISCLOSE TO THE PUBLIC THE ATTENDANCE RECORDS OF LEGISLATORS DURING COMMITTEE HEARINGS IN THE NAME OF TRANSPARENCY WHEREAS , Article VI Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution states that the legislative power shall be vested in the Congress of the Philippines, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives; WHEREAS , Article VI Section 1 of the same mandates that Congress shall convene once every year on the fourth Monday of July for its regular session, unless a different date is fixed by law, and shall continue to be in session for such number of days as it may determine until thirty days before the opening of its next regular session, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. The President may call a special session at any time; WHEREAS, Rule XI, Section 69 of the Rules of the House states that daily sessions shall commence at four o'clock in the afternoon on Mondays through Thursdays and at ten o'clock in the morning on Fridays unless the House decides otherwise; WHEREAS, Rule XIV Section 40 of the Rules of the Senate stipulates that the Senate shall meet in session at three o'clock in the afternoon on weekdays, except when the Senate decides otherwise; WHEREAS, it has been observed that meeting the quorum requirement is a daily problem, with the number of House members already reaching almost 300. The lack of quorum is often cited as the primary reason for the failure of the House of Representatives to deliberate and pass on time the governments priority legislative agenda and other socially important legislative measures. Because of limited time, discussion of bills categorized as priority measures by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council becomes shortened while voting is often done in haste; WHEREAS , aside from addressing the quorum problem, Congress can become more productive by extending the session days and shortening the recess period. At present, Congress sessions take place from Mondays to Wednesdays only, averaging at almost three hours per session; WHEREAS, the principal duty of the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate is to address the needs of district and partylist constituencies through
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responsive legislative work, which require more work in their respective offices in Metro Manila. As a compromise, Congress can hold sessions until Thursdays so that Fridays can be devoted for district work, while legislative consultations can be done during Congress breaks; WHEREAS , in drafting the calendar for the third regular session of the 15th Congress, the Senate and the House should seriously consider a longer time for plenary sessions. If legislators insist on holding sessions for three times a week only, then another option is to reduce Congress breaks; WHEREAS, there are only 84 session days in the current second regular session calendar as opposed to the 98 days during adjournment; WHEREAS, it has also been observed that only few committee meetings are able to muster a quorum. Committee work should be given more importance as it is equally vital to plenary participation. It is during these committee hearings that we hear the position, concerns and comments of concerned stakeholders to legislative proposals. Committee hearings are ripe venues for our citizens to engage our lawmakers on various concerns, a necessary component of democratic politics; WHEREAS, active participation in the committee deliberations is crucial to improve the quality of legislation in the country. Therefore, House Members must be compelled to attend both the plenary and committee sessions; WHEREAS, in the same vein that plenary attendance is being disclosed to the public, it should also be mandatory to publish the attendance of members of Congress during committee hearings in the name of transparency; WHEREAS , Rule IX Section 36 of the Rules of the House of Representatives provides that every member of a committee shall be present in all the committee meetings and public hearings unless prevented from doing so by sickness and unavoidable circumstances duly reported to the concerned committee through the Committee Secretary. A Member of a committee who incurs three consecutive unexplained absences within a regularly session shall forfeit membership in that commmitee; WHEREAS , Rule XI Section 23 of the Rules of the Senate provides that unexplained absences in five successive committee meetings may operate to relinquish regular membership therein; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, AS IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED, that the House of Representatives and the Senate conduct daily plenary sessions on Mondays through Thursdays during regular session periods in order to address more concerns and issues of the people through legislative work; BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, AS IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED, that the House of Representatives and the Senate regularly disclose to the public the attendance records of legislators during committee proceedings in the name of transparency. Adopted, HON. RAYMOND V. PALATINO Representative, Kabataan Partylist