Joker’s ‘double-standard’:
Senator hits SC ruling adding party-list reps but oks new district for Dato, solon says

Kabataan Party-list Rep. Mong Palatino today criticized Sen. Joker Arroyo’s apparent ‘double-standard’ in relation to the recent Senate approval of an additional district in Camarines Sur.

“While he vehemently opposed the Supreme Court ruling allotting additional seats in the House of Representatives for party-list representatives, seats for the marginalized sector of society no less, he now appears to have no such qualms in sponsoring another seat for Camarines,” Palatino said.

Arroyo was one of the most vocal in questioning the SC ruling entitling party-list representatives to 55 seats in Congress. He said that it was ‘not correct for the SC to provide a formula’ and that ‘the High Court has invaded the legislative domain of Congress.’

Arroyo, a known staunch defender of the Macapagal-Arroyo administration, however, Palatino said, failed to take into consideration the ‘unconstitutionality’ of adding a new Camarines Sur district as it fails to comply with the population size requirement.

“One would be prompted to question Sen. Arroyo’s motives. There are murmurs going around of this new district being added to accommodate presidential son Dato Arroyo’s precarious re-election bid. If so, we are not surprised, the good senator himself has benefited from the same move before,” he said.

In 1998, Arroyo, who was then Congressman of the Lone District of Makati, filed a local bill for the creation of a second district of Makati. The Lone District was separated into two – Arroyo became the representative of the first district while then Senator Agapito Aquino was elected for the second district. ##