Quezon 2nd district Rep. David "Jay-Jay" Suarez has praised the "silent but effective" leadership of House Speaker Martin Romualdez in the current 19th Congress, ahead of the election for Speakership in the upcoming 20th Congress.
“Tahimik lang si Speaker Romualdez, pero well-oiled machine ang Kongresong pinapatakbo niya. Lahat ng kulay, kasama basta naniniwala sa pagkakaisa. Magaling din siyang consensus builder, kaya hindi kataka-taka na madami ang susupoorta sa kanya,” Suarez said in a statement Monday, May 26.
(Speaker Romualdez remains quiet, but the Congress he runs operates like a well-oiled machine. People of all affiliations are included, as long as they believe in unity. He is also an excellent consensus builder, so it's no surprise that many support him.)
Suarez, a deputy speaker in the 19th Congress, said over the weekend that 285 out of 317 solons entering the House of Representatives have already declared their support for Romualdez.
A total of 279 of them have put it in writing, Suarez said.
“This is the most cohesive and confident House we have seen in decades. It is not just a supermajority in numbers but a supermajority borne out of trust, built on performance and held together by the strong, principled and competent leadership of Speaker Romualdez,” he added.
“President Marcos called for unity. Speaker Romualdez delivered it. And he delivered it not through words, but through work. Hindi natin maikakaila na ang 19th Congress ang isa sa pinaka-produktibong Kongreso sa kasaysayan, at lahat ng iyan ay dahil may lider tayong responsible at maaasahan,” the House leader from Quezon said.
(We cannot deny that the 19th Congress is one of the most productive in history, and all of that is because we have a leader who is responsible and reliable.)
From July 2022 to May 2025, the House under Romualdez processed an average of 14 measures per session day and passed over 230 laws, many of which have been instrumental to national development and providing aid to Filipinos.
More significantly, the House completed the entire Common Legislative Agenda (CLA) of the Marcos administration, ensuring that nearly all Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC)-priority bills were approved on time.
“Speaker Romualdez engineered a partnership with Malacañang that produced results at the pace of public need. In a time when Filipinos demanded progress, the House responded. Quiet but strong leadership ang brand ni Speaker, at alam ng mga mambabatas ‘yan kaya siya pa rin ang pipiliing Speaker,” Suarez noted.
(Quiet but strong leadership is the Speaker’s brand, the solons know this that's why he will still be chosen as Speaker.)
Among the major measures enacted were the Maharlika Investment Fund, the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, the Magna Carta for Seafarers, and the New Agrarian Emancipation Act.