By Ellson Quismorio Bayan Muna Party-List Rep. Carlos Zarate believes he knows the real reason why Muntinlupa City Rep. Rozzano Rufino Biazon ultimately voted "no" to the Anti-Terrorism Bill despite being one of the its main authors and sponsors: the Makabayan bloc's arguments convinced him to do so. Muntinlupa City Rep. Rozzano Rufino "Ruffy" Biazon (Congressman Ruffy Biazon / FACEBOOK) Biazon was among the 31 House members who opposed the proposed Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 during nominal voting at the plenary session Wednesday. The six-member Makabayan Bloc likewise voted no. "Nakita naman natin yung mga bumoto ng 'no' kahapon at kahit yung primary author ng bill na si Congressman Ruffy Biazon ay bumoto ng 'no' sa kahuli-hulihan dahil siguro napagtanto niya na tama yung aming inilatag na pagtutol dito sa panukalang batas na ito (We saw those who voted 'no' yesterday and even the bill's primary author, Congressman Ruffy Biazon entered a 'no' vote at the end because he probably realized that the arguments we laid down against the proposed law was correct)," Zarate said during a virtual press conference Thursday. "We did not expect that one of the principal authors, Cong Ruffy Biazon the night before, dinepensahan pa niya yung panukalang batas na niyan, talagang dinepensahan niya to the end (he still defended the proposed law during plenary debates, he really defended it up to the end)," noted Zarate, a Deputy Minority Leader. The measure was still passed on third and final reading on the strength of 173 affirmative votes. Some 29 solons abstained--a relatively huge number. However, the bill that was voted on and adopted by the House of Representatives was the Senate's version of the measure, specifically Senate Bill (SB) No.1083. Biazon explained the reason for his negative vote. "I believe that the House should come up with an important piece of legislation that is truly the work of the House of Representatives, not just a mere adoption of the other chamber," said the vice chairman of the House Committee on National Defense and Security. Biazon, son of former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff and multi-term senator and Rodolfo Biazon, nonetheless underscored the need for an anti-terror bill. "Hindi pa tapos ang laban ng Makabayan Bloc. Nananawagan tayo sa ating mga kasamahan, mayroon pang panahon para i-recall ito (The fight of the Makabayan Bloc isn't over yet. We appeal to our colleagues, there's still time to recall this)," Zarate said of the measure. "On the pretext of amending the Human Security Act of 2007 to make it more effective in the fight against terrorism, this new anti-terror law has expanded and overly broadened the definition of terrorism to make it easier for authorities to declare legitimate acts of expression, collective action, and dissent protected by the Constitution as terrorism," he claimed. "Most dangerous yet is that this new anti-terror law grants vast discretionary powers to the Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC), composed of Cabinet officials, mostly from the defense and security sectors, that have heretofore been reserved to courts," said the lawyer-congressman. Zarate said the ATC will have the power to designate individuals and groups as terrorist, authorize the warrantless arrests and detention for up to 24 days, freeze bank accounts and other assets, and conduct sweeping surveillance on private communications.