House Speaker Martin Romualdez (left), Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte (Facebook)

House Speaker Martin Romualdez has taken up the cudgels for the "Young Guns" bloc, the members of which have been assailed for being vocal on national issues, particularly the alleged bloodbath that was the previous Duterte administration’s war on drugs.

“The quad-comm and our ‘Young Guns’ have become the target of those who prefer the shadows over the light. They attempt to undermine our work, casting aspersions and spreading false narratives to discredit our pursuit of accountability,” Romualdez said in his speech before the plenary on Monday, Nov. 4.

The quad-committee or quad-comm has been at the forefront of the congressional inquiry on the controversial drug war. The Young Guns solons have been active participants in the probe and have not shied away from giving their personal views on it.

Romualdez credited the efforts of these young, up-and-coming congressmen for the impact made by the quad-comm in its "fight for truth".

"I would like to highlight the monumental work of the quad-committee, a collective effort led by some of the brightest and most dedicated members of this House, including the 'Young Guns' and others who have dedicated their time, energy, and conviction to this cause," the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) president said.

'Young goons'

Some two weeks ago, Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte took a jab at Young Guns stalwart Deputy Majority Leader Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA) Party-list Rep. Margarita "Atty. Migs" Nograles and called her faction, the "young goons".

Rep. Duterte is the son of former president Rodrigo Duterte, the central figure in the drug war probe.

HAVE YOU READ THIS?

https://mb.com.ph/2024/10/23/suarez-reacts-to-cong-duterte-s-tirade

Deputy Speaker Quezon 2nd district Rep. David "Jay-jay" Suarez, the "road show manager" of the Young Guns, had called Rep. Duterte's remark "unfair" given the sheer amount of work the group has done in recent months. 

"First of all, you have to commend the legislative work the Young Guns have done for the 19th Congress...Very active sila pagdating sa committee hearings, pagdating sa committee deliberations (They're very active when it comes to committee hearing and committee deliberations)," Suarez said.

"I hope I can say the same for certain congressmen who seem to forget that they're congressmen and not show up for plenary work," the Quezon lawmaker added.

Monday was the resumption of congressional sessions after a six-week break.