Tulfo succeeded Jeffrey Soriano, who resigned in February.
But House Secretary General Reginald Velasco said Tulfo cannot assume office yet pending the formal letter from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that he was indeed the nominee of the party who can replace Soriano.
Tulfo also has a pending disqualification case before the Comelec en banc.
“We were informed by the Comelec that the case has been dismissed and so we can go ahead with the oath taking. So anyway, the oath of office is a formality, one of the requirements that we need, so while we wait for the formal notification from Comelec, he can take the oath already,” Velasco said.
“Once we receive the Comelec letter that he is indeed the nominee, the official nominee to replace…Cong. Soriano, ‘yun lang kailangan naming. In lieu of that, ACT CIS has also informed us [that] he is indeed the nominee who has replaced former Cong. Soriano [and] was just awaiting the formal communication from the Comelec so that he can actually take his office. But the oath taking is just a formality. It’s one of our requirements so pwede nang ituloy yan kasi we were already assured by the Comelec that the letter is a forthcoming and we were furnished a copy of the notice of dismissal of the case against him,” he added.
In a television interview, Tulfo said his functions will be limited, noting that he cannot vote on measures and attend sessions and committee hearings.
He expressed confidence that the disqualification petition filed against him by lawyer Moise Tolentino over issues of citizenship and conviction by final judgment of a crime involving moral turpitude will be dismissed.
The complaint was junked by the Comelec Second Division on March 1, 2023, a decision appealed by the petitioner before the en banc. (SunStar Philippines)