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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 'Maraming dapat balikan': Ortega adds to growing clamor for quad-comm comeback in 20th Congress

'Maraming dapat balikan': Ortega adds to growing clamor for quad-comm comeback in 20th Congress

Published Jul 17, 2025 08:35 pm

At A Glance

  • The clamor for a quad-committee (quad-comm) version 2.0 is beginning to snowball in the House of Representatives.
La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega V (PPAB)
La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega V (PPAB)


The clamor for a quad-committee (quad-comm) version 2.0 is beginning to snowball in the House of Representatives.
This, after La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega V underscored on Thursday, July 17 the need to reconstitute the special four-way panel in the nascent 20th Congress.
According to the "Young Guns" bloc member, the quad-comm--which originated in there previous 19th Congress--has a lot of "unfinished business" in terms of the issues that it investigated in aid of legislation.
And then there are also new, emerging issues that would be perfect for a highly-organized and efficient panel like the quad-comm to handle.
“Marami pa tayong unfinished business. Marami tayong kailangang balikan. At siyempre ang mga quad bills at measures na kailangan ding i-refile ulit (We have a lot of unfinished business. We have a lot of issues to revisit. And of course we have the quad bills and measures that have to be refiled),” Ortega said in a press conference.
“Kailangan talaga ‘yung quad-comm 2.0 kasi ang daming issues na naglalabasan. Alam naman natin ‘yung efficiency ng joint committees na ‘yan (We really need a quad-comm 2.0 because of all the issues that are coming out. We're familiar with the efficiency of those joint committees)," he added.
The quad-comm in the 19th Congress was composed of the Committees on Dangerous Drugs, Public Order and Safety, Human Rights, and Public Accounts. It's overall chairman was Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers.
It spent 15 marathon hearings delving into the alleged links between Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), illegal drugs, supposed land grabbing by some Chinese nationals, and the extrajudicial killings (EJKs) associated with the Duterte administration’s bloody war on drugs.
The hearings drew massive public attention, went viral on social media, and were often compared to a primetime political thriller. The highest profile witness grilled by the joint panel was former president Rodrigo Duterte himself.
The panel’s work led to the filing of several key measures, including bills declaring EJK a heinous crime, banning POGOs in the Philippines, amending the Anti-Money Laundering Act, and institutionalizing inter-agency cooperation in human rights investigations.
More recently, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said some of the 34 missing "sabungeros" (cockfighting enthusiasts) may have fallen victim to EJKs tied to the Duterte-era drug war.
“‘Pag maraming concerns, maraming problema (If there are a lot of concerns and problems), the best way to solve this is through legislation, through the convening of the different committees concerned,” Ortega said.
Manila 6th district Rep. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr., the only returning co-chairman of the original quad-comm, earlier confirmed plans to reconstitute the panel.
Ortega said he expects quad-comm version 2.0 to be one of the defining initiatives of the 20th Congress.
“Talagang it will be the first leg [of the] 20th Congress. Madami siguro ang mangyayari (I think a lot of thinks will happen),” he said.
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