Party-list expels solon member for reneging on term-sharing pact

A party-list group has dropped from its membership rolls its representative in the Lower House after reneging on a term-sharing agreement with the group’s second nominee.

In its letter to House Speaker Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte dated Dec. 15, Ating Koop Party-list bared that the central committee of the nationwide cooperatives movement is replacing Rep. Isidro Lico with Roberto Mascarina, the group’s second nominee.

“This is pursuant to a Resolution adopted by the party expelling Mr. Isidro Lico from the party and directing Mr. Roberto Mascarina to assume the position vacated by Mr. Lico as the party representative in Congress,” Ating Koop secretary general Romeo Candazo stated in their letter.

Canadazo was a former congressman representing Marikina City.

Lico’s ouster as party-list representative came a week after unidentified gunmen wounded a party-list solon, Kakusa Rep. Ranulfo Canonigo in Marikina City in an apparent assassination plot.

According to initial reports, party-list intramural was the reason behind the failed execution.

Lico has been “disowned and denounced” by the party-list organization for reneging a term-sharing pact with Mascarina and for failure to comply with the unanimous decision of the central committee directing him to “uphold the validity, legality and binding effect of the agreement.”

A copy of Lico’s “irrevocable” letter of resignation was also presented by the party-list organization.

Instead of heeding the decision signed on Nov. 21 by nine of the 11 members of the central committee, Lico reportedly went the Commission on Elections to inform the poll body that he will not honor the term sharing agreement.

“Under the term sharing agreement, his acts amount to disloyalty which is a ground for expulsion from the party. Under the party-list law, the same ground is the basis for withdrawing a nominee from Congress,” said Candazo, citing Republic Act 7941.

In a statement, the party-list organization reminded Lico that RA 7941 or the Party-list Act provides that the party and not the personality is the one being voted into office. The group reminded Lico that refusal to comply with the decision of the party comprises “usurpation of power.”

The party-list group also revealed that Lico is currently being investigated by the Ombudsman for alleged using portion of Ating Koop’s congressional allocation to finance the construction of a structure in a private resort. -Charlie V. Manalo, Daily Tribune