Last October 9, the Legislative Assembly (LA) convened at the USG Session Hall to deliberate on the implementation of an “improved” legislative process, the formation of LA Committees, and the resignation of certain officers from the student government.
Changes in Legislative Process
A new scheme in the legislative process was proposed by CATCH2T22 Representative Shannon Ho and 73rd ENG Representative Alfonso Claros requiring the transmission of resolutions to the USG President and the Executive Committee (EXECOM). In the past, approved resolutions were not transmitted to the President, which the proponents claimed impedes “policy implementation”. The act will also facilitate the veto power of the USG President and EXECOM since resolutions approved by the LA will be immediately released to the executive branch. Once a resolution is vetoed, the LA is given the option to accept or amend the resolution in a succeeding session.
BLAZE2020 Representative Urban Teh raised his concern that the veto power might be abused. “In the USG and Philippine government, all three branches are supposed to be equal. Is it going to be equal if the powers of the LA is limited [by] the president?” he relayed.
Ho and Claros clarified that the transmission of resolutions is only for proper implementation of policies. USG President Lance Dela Cruz, who attended the session, explained that not releasing approved resolutions to the EXECOM prevents immediate action.
“It’s just a piece of paper,” Dela Cruz said, referring to untransmitted resolutions.
Dela Cruz also assured the LA that just cause will be given to serve as basis for vetoing resolutions. “In the past, it (veto) has always been based on legal objectives…This is what I am going to follow. Never ginamit ang personal reasons or interest. If ever ginawa ito, it is impeachable,” he expressed.
(It was never used for personal reasons or interest. If ever it was done, it is impeachable.)
A legal criteria for the vetoing power of the president and EXECOM was suggested by FAST2017 Representative Neal Gonzales. He mentioned that just cause should be elaborated on and that it should have legal basis. However, FAST2018 Representative Maegan Ragudo argued that the provision for vetoing resolutions is already laid out in Article IX, Section 1.4 of the USG Constitution. She added that amendments to this provision, such as adding a legal criteria, should instead be included in the USG constitutional plebiscite.
Several resignations
Nicole Planas, CATCH2T20 Batch Vice President, and Stella Santos, 71st ENG LA Representative, stepped down from their positions through a resolution presented to the Assembly. Both cited academic reasons as causes for their resignation. Santos previously served as Chief Legislator immediately prior to BLAZE2019 Representative Willem De Castro.
On the other hand, FOCUS 2017 Batch President Ina Mulingbayan also forwarded academic responsibilities as reason for her resignation, and “[preparations] for the upcoming National Medical Admission Test” in the following year. Mulingbayan, who was unable to attend the session, was represented by the resolution’s proponents, who guaranteed legislators that Julia Brago, College of Science President, has also been made aware of her resignation.
Ysa Cort, LA Representative for EDGE2017, also conveyed that she chose to resign because of her program’s demanding workload and to improve her mental health. “I decided to let go of this as I am [in the] process of bettering myself…[It is] better for me to leave than not be able to do my job properly,” Cort wrote in her resignation letter.
All of the resignations were approved by the Assembly with a unanimous vote.
LA Committee formation, officer elections
With the new LA representatives in place for the academic year, the committee members of Students’ Rights and Welfare (STRAW), Rules and Policies (RnP), and National Affairs (NatAff) were formed based on the results of the LA exam. Officers for each committee were also elected by the LA based on unanimous voting.
For the STRAW committee, EXCEL2020 Representative Katkat Ignacio was elected as Chairperson, BLAZE2021 Representative Robin Lim as Vice Chairperson, and EDGE2018 Representative Leonna Gula as Secretary. Officers assigned for the RnP committee were CATCH2T21 Representative Jaime Pastor as Chairperson, Teh as Vice Chair, and CATCH2T20 Paolo Delos Reyes as Secretary. Meanwhile, 72nd ENG Representative Ethan Rupisan was appointed head of the NatAff committee as Chairperson, followed by EXCEL2020 Representative Nina Bermejo as Vice Chair, and Ho as Secretary.
