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Paolo vs Paolo: Ortega corrects Marcoleta on virtual voting claim
Philippines
National
Paolo vs Paolo: Ortega corrects Marcoleta on virtual voting claim
Paolo vs Paolo: Ortega corrects Marcoleta on virtual voting claim
Published May 29, 2026 02:43 pm
At A Glance
- Ortega corrects Marcoleta's claim, stressing virtual voting in the House was introduced only during the pandemic for emergencies.
- He says House rules still require physical attendance, with remote participation limited to defined circumstances.
- He rejects House-Senate comparisons, noting the House's 317 members must address district concerns unlike the Senate's 24.
La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega V (left), SAGiP Party-list Rep. Paolo Marcoleta (Facebook)
Deputy Speaker La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega V corrected his colleague, SAGiP Party-list Rep. Paolo Marcoleta on Friday, May 29 regarding the latter's claim that virtual voting had always been permitted in the House of Representatives.
Ortega gave context to this emergency-based remote voting mechanism in the House, and said that it was a product of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Ilocano says the fact that the rule was limited to emergencies and official functions, means it cannot be fairly equated with proposals seeking to expand virtual participation in Senate sessions ahead of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
This was the main point of Rep. Marcoleta, who in a Facebook post had raised the "example" of the House of Representatives in arguing for his father, Senator Rodante Marcoleta's proposal to allow online participation and voting among members of the upper chamber.
“Hindi po pwedeng piliin lang ang bahagi ng rules na convenient sa argumento. Kapag binasa mo nang buo ang House rules, malinaw na ang virtual participation ay exception — hindi default mode ng lehislatura,” Ortega said, referring to the SAGIP solon's comments on the Senate issue.
(You cannot just pick the parts of the rules that are convenient to the argument. When you read the House rules in full, it is clear that virtual participation is an exception — not the default mode of the legislature.)
“The House framework was crafted as a practical and limited mechanism during extraordinary circumstances, and it has been applied under defined parameters during the pandemic period,” the deputy speaker explained.
Ortega said Rep. Marcoleta simply ignored the actual restrictions written into the rules of the House of Representatives in the 20th Congress as far as virtual or online participation was concerned.
“Napakalinaw ng Section 89. Hindi ito ginawa para sa convenience. Hindi ito ginawa para makaiwas sa pagharap sa plenaryo. Ginawa ito para matiyak na tuloy ang trabaho ng Kongreso kapag may emergency o extraordinary circumstances,” he said.
(It is very clear in Section 89. It was not made for convenience. It was not made to avoid facing the plenary. It was made to ensure that Congress’s work continues during emergencies or extraordinary circumstances.)
Ortega said House rules allow remote participation only during emergencies, pandemics, extraordinary circumstances and narrowly defined official business — not as a substitute for physical attendance in proceedings involving national interest.
He also pointed to Section 71, which recognizes limited exemptions from physical attendance for official duties such as committee hearings, bicameral conference meetings, sessions of the Commission on Appointments (CA), House Electoral Tribunal (HRET) proceedings, and missions authorized by the Speaker.
“The rules are still anchored on physical attendance. The exemptions are narrowly defined and supported by clear justification. They were never intended to serve as an open-ended authority to turn normal legislative proceedings into virtual sessions,” he explained.
Ortega further rejected comparisons between the House and Senate, and noted that the two legislative chambers operate under different conditions.
“Sa House, 317 kaming miyembro na may kanya-kanyang distrito sa buong bansa. Habang may sesyon, may mga bagyo, sakuna, peace and order concerns at emergency situations sa mga lalawigan na kailangan ding tugunan ng mga congressman,” Ortega said.
(In the House, we are 317 members with our own districts across the country. During sessions, there are typhoons, disasters, peace and order concerns, and emergency situations in the provinces that congressmen also need to address.)
"Sa Senado, 24 lang ang miyembro at wala namang districts na kailangang balikan habang may plenary sessions,” he pointed out.
(In the Senate, there are only 24 members and no districts to return to while plenary sessions are ongoing.)
Last Tuesday, Senate minority bloc members walked out during plenary session after the elder Marcoleta pushed for the tweaking of Senate rules to allow online participation and voting among senators.