The pseudo minority in the House of Representatives completely misses the import why the authentic minority has asked the Supreme Court to oust Rep. Danilo Suarez, the “minority leader” handpicked by the leadership of the supermajority.

It is not a question of securing political power because that belongs to the majority coalition, principally the ruling PDP-Laban.

The petition for mandamus with the High Court is a suit to assure credible and potent dissent, which is the hallmark of a democratic deliberative assembly like the House of Representatives.

A eunuch of a minority makes the House the courtyard of spineless clowns.

How can the Liberal Party be accused of desperation to stay in power when those who joined the majority coalition are virtual second class citizens in the supermajority, while those who opted from the very start to be with the minority are so few as to make a run for power.

While not seeking political power since power is a contradiction to a minority status, the authentic minority of seven members seeks to maintain a genuine opposition who are not beholden to or an adjunct of the supermajority.

The doctrine of “political question” is almost an extinct invocation because the 1987 Constitution expanded the power of judicial review of the Supreme Court to include the adjudication of cases involving grave abuse of discretion committed by functionaries in the political departments.

Consequently, the Supreme Court has jurisdiction to rule on the grave abuse of discretion of leaders of the supermajority in interpreting and applying the internal rules of the House of Representatives which includes longstanding traditions, in refusing to recognize Rep. Teddy Baguilat, Jr. as the duly elected Minority Leader after he placed a clear second to Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.

EDCEL C. LAGMAN