House passes measure that punishes ‘political butterflies’
Credit to Author: GLEE JALEA| Date: Tue, 05 Feb 2019 17:58:49 +0000
Public officials who change their political party a year before or after elections may soon be banned if a measure approved by the House Committee on Ways and Means becomes a law.
The House panel on Monday approved the proposed Political Party Development Act to strengthen the political party system and promote party loyalty and discipline.
The unnumbered bill was authored by House Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Majority Leader Fredenil Castro and 14 other lawmakers, consolidating House Bills 522, 697, 1695 and 7088.
Under the measure, political turncoatism, or changing political affiliation a year before or after the holding of national elections will be punished.
Penalties for “political turncoats” include forfeiture of their elective office; disqualification from running for any elective position in the next election; prohibition from holding any position in any government office for three years after the expiration of his or her current term; prohibition from assuming any executive or administrative position in the new political party; and refund of the amount received from the previous political party and a 25 percent surcharge thereon.
Any citizen of voting age or any candidate, political party may file with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) a petition to disqualify a candidate on the ground of political turncoatism.
Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo previously cited the case of the Liberal Party (LP), which had lots of “political butterflies” when the term of former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino 3rd started.
“Our party is small. When [Aquino] became president, politicians rushed to LP and we became bigger, but when PNoy stepped down our numbers dwindled again,” she said.
Partido Demokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) President and Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel 3rd said in August 2018 that since the 2016 elections, the membership of the party had significantly increased from 40,000 to 93,000 — with 300,000 pending applications.
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