House Speaker Martin Romualdez (Speaker’s office)

The leadership of the House of Representatives is doubling down on its mission statement to help bring down the cost of food and electricity via its investigations at the tail end of the 19th Congress.

House Speaker Martin Romualdez vowed during plenary session Monday afternoon, Jan. 13 that the lower chamber would continue to pursue its inquiries for the purpose of oversight.

“Good governance demands transparency and accountability. This chamber is the vanguard of that principle. In the coming weeks, we will hold oversight hearings to ensure that the people’s money serves the people’s needs,” said Romualdez, who addressed his colleagues for the first time since the month-long holiday recess.

“We will investigate the smuggling and hoarding that undermine our farmers and inflate food prices. We will probe ₱206 billion in disallowed expenditures by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), ensuring energy reforms that lower electricity costs,” he said.

The leader of the 307-strong House said his chamber would also “demand answers for ₱11.18 billion worth of expired medicines and underutilized PhilHealth funds - an affront to every Filipino who struggles for access to healthcare,” he said.

“And we will scrutinize the alleged misuse of confidential funds, for no peso must go unaccounted for,” added the Leyte 1st district congressman and Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) president. 

“Let this be our promise: public trust is sacred, and this House will never betray it,” Speaker Romualdez said.

The House leader subsequently gave this warning to the chamber’s critics.

“Sa mga umaatake sa atin para tumigil tayo sa mga imbestigasyon, may mensahe tayo sa kanila. Itutuloy natin ang trabahong ini-atang sa atin ng mamamayan. Hindi tayo aatras sa anumang laban para sa bayan,” he said.

(To those who have been assailing us and telling us to halt our investigations, we have a message for them. We will continue to perform the task that our people gave to us. We will not back out from any fight that will benefit the nation.)

On Sunday, Jan. 12, Senior Deputy Speaker Pampanga 3rd district Rep. Aurelio "Dong" Gonzales Jr. said the House of Representatives would focus on oversight during the final stretch of the 19th Congress.