Antipolo’s special elections

The one-month campaign period for the congressional seat of Antipolo City’s second district begins on Thursday this week.

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The polls are slated for March 14 this year. Seven aspirants have filed their certificates of candidacy in a bid to fill the vacant position.

This is the first time elections for a congressional seat are taking place in the aftermath of the flood-control projects controversy. It will be recalled that several members of the House of Representatives were implicated in the issue in question. The polls are also taking place as debates on the impeachment of national leaders intensify. We are glad that despite the chaos, a good number of civic-minded citizens are still interested in serving in this elective post.

This is also an opportunity to review the role of a congressman and to reexamine whether or not that actual role matches the expectations of voters and the promises the candidates make.

The formal powers of congressmen are awesome. Let us begin with their exercise of legislative powers under Article VI of the 1987 Constitution. Because of this power, congressmen, working with committees at the House, can summon individuals to hearings “in aid of legislation.” The laws they pass carry a significant impact on the social and economic life, not just of their constituents, but of the entire nation.

One of the most important pieces of legislation they pass is the General Appropriations Act, otherwise known as the national budget law. This is where they exercise the so-called “power of the purse.” They scrutinize the proposed expenditures of line agencies, get the latter to defend such proposals, and decide on their fate.