MY two long-time good friends – Caloocan City Rep. Egay Erice and Navotas City Rep. Toby Tiangco – have joined forces just to urge President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to immediately call a special session of Congress after Holy Week to urgently address the growing impact of the Middle East crisis on the daily lives of Filipinos.
With the President already declaring a state of energy emergency, it’s imperative for Congress to remain in session and act decisively, they said.
“Hindi pwedeng naka-break ang Kongreso habang ang mamamayan ay nahihirapan. This is not the time for recess—this is the time for action,” Erice said.
The two veteran lawmakers stressed that the crisis goes beyond energy concerns and now affects inflation, transportation costs, food security, government revenues, and the safety of overseas Filipino workers, especially if tensions in the Middle East would escalate further.
“Kung magpapatuloy ang kaguluhan sa Middle East, libo-libong OFWs ang nanganganib, at pati ang kanilang mga pamilya dito sa Pilipinas ay direktang maaapektuhan,” Tiangco added.
Both legislators have already filed measures to mitigate the impact of the crisis, including fuel subsidies for affected sectors, government austerity measures and suspension of the value-added tax on petroleum products to ease the burden on consumers.
They also called on the House of Representatives to exercise its oversight powers over rising oil prices, citing alarming data.
“Sa Asian diesel price tracker, ang Pilipinas ay nakapagtala ng halos 97% increase sa presyo ng diesel—samantalang sa ibang bansa sa Asya, nasa 30% to 40% lamang. Nakakapagduda na sa gitna ng krisis ay may mga posibleng nagsasamantala,” Erice said.
To ensure continuity of legislative work while conserving resources, Erice proposed a modified schedule: “Maari tayong mag-session ng dalawang araw kada linggo mula 10A.M. hanggang 5P.M. para makatipid sa fuel at kuryente.”
Meanwhile, Tiangco suggested practical austerity measures within Congress: “Pwede nating alisin muna ang food catering. Kanya-kanyang baon na lang—kape at tinapay sapat na. Ang mahalaga, tuloy ang trabaho.”
They reiterated that during times of crisis, the government must be visibly working for the people.
