Lawmaker seeks to claim House seat even with just 3 sessions left

The Philippine Congress only has three session days left before it adjourns for the election campaign period. But Celestino Martinez III – who has yet to claim his seat as Cebu’s fourth district representative – is not about to lose hope. On Wednesday, Martinez, son of former congresswoman Clavel Martinez, urged the House leadership to enforce the Supreme Court’s January 19 decision ruling with finality that he – and not sitting congressman Benhur Salimbangon – won the seat in the last elections. "I hope the Speaker has the good conscience to implement the Supreme Court ruling, and I believe this goes beyond party affiliation," said Martinez, a member of the Liberal Party, at a press conference inside the Batasan Pambansa. Nograles is a leader at administration party Lakas-Kampi-CMD, of which Salimbangon is a member. In a text message, Nograles said he has "no problem" implementing the Supreme Court decision. However, he said that "there are pending legal obstacles that needs to be addressed" before the House can implement the high court's decision. Nograles pointed out that the Office of Solicitor General has a pending appeal regarding the decision that declared Martinez the winner. "It is our legal position that we should wait for the the SC to act on the OSG's motion before taking any action on this matter," he said. Congress will adjourn session on February 5, a few days before the start of the official campaign period on February 9. The 14th Congress will resume session for the last time from May 31 to June 4 for the canvassing of May 2010 votes. - RJAB Jr./GMANews.TV