Seemingly taking advantage of the endorphins produced among congressmen during a long but productive plenary session, Batangas 1st district Rep. Leandro Legarda Leviste has made a plea to a House leader in order to save his friend, "congressmeow" Cavite 4th district Rep. Francisco "Kiko" Barzaga.

That House leader is Deputy Speaker Iloilo 1st district Rep. Janette Garin, who late last month hinted to reporters that an expulsion recommendation was imminent against the supposed recidivist Barzaga.

Following the end of Wednesday's seven-hour plenary session, Leviste posted on Facebook a photo of him, Barzaga, and Garin all showing their pearly whites.

Unsurprisingly, the solon from Dasmariñas was in his signature "meow meow" pose.

"Ang ganda ng ngiti dito ni Dr. Janette Loreto-Garin. Huwag na niya sanang patalsikin si Congressman Kiko Barzaga. ???? Baka ma-miss niya rin siya sa plenaryo," wrote Leviste, who was apparently aware of the rumors.

(Dr. Janette Loreto-Garin’s smile here is beautiful. Hopefully she does not expel Congressman Kiko Barzaga. ???? She might miss him in the plenary too.)

Last April 28, Garin--the complainant in Barzaga's latest case before the Committee on Ethics and Privileges--said that the panel had already reached a decision, and that it was likely to be expulsion.

Barzaga has already served two separate 60‑day suspensions for disorderly behavior, with Garin stressing that repeated violations in Congress typically lead to expulsion.

The ethics panel, chaired by 4Ps Party-list Rep. JC Abalos, had been expected to present its findings to the plenary since the resumption of sessions on May 4. So far, it has not happened.

Meanwhile, Barzaga has arguably been in his best behavior in recent months.

At any rate, the House members were seemingly in a good mood Wednesday, as they manage to pass on second reading legacy-defining bills such as the proposed Anti-Political Dynasty Law and the emergency response-themed KALINGA Act.

Leviste also scored a small victory in plenary Wednesday, after the majority favored his amendment to the KALINGA Act before it was granted penultimate approval.

"P25B ang matitipid sa pag-apruba ngayong araw ng aking panukalang 20% cut sa travel, seminars, at iba pang "hindi kinakailangang gastos" ng gobyerno. Pero kung tinanggap ang una kong panukalang 50% cut, halos P62.5B sana ang matipid. Patuloy ang ating laban sa Kongreso para mas malaki pa ang matipid, at mapunta ito sa tulong para sa ating mga kababayan at pagbaba ng buwis," he wrote on a separate post.

(P25 billion will be saved with today’s approval of my proposal for a 20% cut in government travel, seminars, and other “unnecessary expenses". But if my original proposal for a 50% cut had been accepted, nearly P62.5 billion would have been saved. Our fight in Congress continues so that even greater savings can be achieved and redirected to aid for our people and tax reduction.)

Wednesday's plenary session ended at around 10 p.m.