‘No work, no pork’ proposed in House

A lawmaker on Tuesday proposed a "no work, no pork" policy at the House of Representatives to ensure quorum during sessions. In her report in GMA News' "24 Oras," Sherrie Ann Torres said Nueva Ecija Representative Edno Joson made the proposal as he noted that delays in the passage of important measures are oftentimes caused by lack of quorum. "Baka sakali ngayon magkaroon ng, in effect, sanction. Matamaan kasi ‘yung bulsa roon. Tatamaan yung maaring project sa distrito (Hopefully this will work, because this will hit the pockets of the congressmen)," Joson said. Pork refers to pork barrel, or the multi-million Priority Development Assistance Fund that congressmen receive every year to finance various projects in their respective areas. The report said a House record shows that from August 1 to 23, the chamber failed to muster quorum during its sessions.

Gabriela Party-list Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan attributed such absences to the election fever. "Apparently they are already on elections mode because many of the district representatives have not come back in the offices. In the office we say no work, no pay. Probably that's a good idea, no work no pork," she said. The report said the minority bloc endorsed Joson's proposal. Speaker Prospero Nograles however was not keen on the idea, saying it is not the congressmen who would be affected by the removal of pork barrel but their constituents. - GMANews.TV