Santa Rosa City lone district Rep. Dan Fernandez says he will never regret playing a part in the House quad-committee (quad-comm) despite it being allegedly a huge reason why he lost in the 2025 mid-term polls.
Fernandez highlighted this in his closing speech Monday night, June 9 during the quad-comm's 15th and final hearing in the 19th Congress.
"Hindi ko maiwasang makaramdam ng lungkot… at ng panghihinayang (I cannot help but feel sadness... and regret)," the quad-comm co-chairman said.
"Hindi man po tayo pinalad noong nakaraang eleksyon, maraming nagsasabi na matindi ang naging demolition job hindi lang laban sa akin, kundi sa ilan sa mga kasamahan kong matagal nang nagsusulong ng mga isyung mahalaga para sa bayan," he said.
(Even though we were not fortunate in the last election, many have said that there was a severe demolition job—not just against me, but also against some of my colleagues who have long pursued importance issues for the nation.)
"Sabi ng iba, ito daw pagsama ko sa quad-comm ang dahilan kung bakit hindi ako nanalo (Some say that my decision to join the quad-comm was the reason I lost)," noted Fernandez.
"Hindi natin alam ang buong katotohanan—of course there were several other factors—pero ang sigurado po ako: hinding-hindi ko pinagsisisihan na ipinaglaban ko ang ating bansa (We do not know the full truth—of course, there were several other factors—but what I am absolutely certain of is this: I will never regret fighting for our country)," underscored the movie actor-turned-legislator.
A third-termer in the House, Fernandez ran for Laguna governor during the May 12 elections. He ended up at third place.
He chaired the Committee on Public Order and Safety in the 19th Congress. This panel, along with the Committees on Dangerous Drugs, on Human Rights, and on Public Accounts comprise the vaunted quad-comm.
Since August 2024, the quad-comm has been looking into the alleged interconnected issues of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO), extrajudicial killings (EJKs), money-laundering, illegal drugs, and former president Rodrigo Duterte's bloody war on drugs.
As far as Fernandez is concerned, lending his time and effort in the quad-comm hearings was a noble move.
"Ako po ay isang ama. At bilang isang tatay, hinding-hindi ko hahayaang ang mga anak natin—ang kabataan—ang siyang magdusa dahil sa ating kawalan ng paninindigan (I am a father. And as a father, I will never allow our children—the youth—to suffer because of our lack of conviction)," he said.