Davao del Norte 1st district Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez (left), expelled Negros Oriental 3rd district Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. (Facebook)

Who said that none of Negros Oriental 3rd district Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr.'s House colleagues sided with him? 

Davao del Norte 1st district Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez has written a letter to House Majority Leader and Zamboanga 2nd district Rep. Mannix Dalipe to underscore his rejection of the recommendation to expel the controversial Teves. 

Alvarez's office said the letter was sent on Thursday afternoon, Aug.17. 

"I write to convey and reiterate my "No" vote against the adoption of Committee on Ethics and Privilege[s] Report No.717 in relation to the expulsion of Hon. Arnolfo Teves Jr. Further, it is the position of the undersigned that said negative vote be reflected in the records of the House of Representatives," read a copy of the letter sent by Alvarez's office. 

Alvarez, a former House Speaker, was referring to the plenary vote Wednesday night, Aug. 16 wherein the solons voted 265-0-3 (yes-no-abstain) on the ethics panel's expulsion recommendation. 

It was not clear from the letter whether or not the Mindanaoan failed to enter his negative vote during the actual time of voting, as the official count clearly only showed total affirmative votes and abstentions. 

What's clear from a statement sent by Alvarez to the House reporters was his criticism on the bases for the expulsion recommendation on Teves, which he described as "unacceptable". 

“Tinanggal si Cong. Teves dahil sa absence without leave, sumubok kumuha ng political asylum sa Timor-Leste, at dahil sa mga pinopost niya sa social media. Grave ba yun? Parang hindi naman yata. Maraming iba na mas mabigat pa ang kasalanan pero hindi naman tinanggal.” Alvarez said. 

(Cong. Teves was removed due to his absence without leave, his attempts to gain political asylum in Timor-Leste, and his posts on social media. Are those grave offenses? I don't think so. There have been others who had much graver offenses but were not removed.) 

Teves has been out of the country since Feb. 28, 2023. He has refused to come home after being tagged as the mastermind in the March 4 assassination of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo. 

As far as the Degamo case was concerned, the Davao del Norte solon said that due process should take its course. 

"Yung hukuman ang maghusga pagkatapos makita yung ebidensya, at kung nagkasala, edi hatulan nila, at tsaka nila tanggalin sa Kamara. 

(The court should come up with its verdict after looking at the evidence, and if he's guilty, hand down the penalty, and afterwards let the House remove him.) 

Alvarez underscored that Teves was "democratically elected" and that his expulsion from the chamber, sans a court order, "strikes at the cornerstone of the republican and democratic system of the State. The people who voted for him are now effectively deprived of representation and thus disenfranchised." 

“Di raw kasi okay yung pinaglalalagay sa Facebook, kaya nila tatanggalin, kalokohan yan (They said his postings on Facebook weren't okay, that's why they will remove him. That's nonsense),” he added.