Comelec says removal does not automatically bar him from running again, leaving open the possibility of a special election in Dasmariñas
MANILA — The House of Representatives has expelled Cavite 4th District Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Barzaga, ending a months-long disciplinary confrontation that tested the chamber’s authority to police the conduct of its own members.
The vote on Tuesday, June 2, was 265 in favor, 14 against and eight abstentions, meeting the constitutional threshold required to remove a member of the House. Lawmakers adopted the recommendation of the Committee on Ethics and Privileges, which cited disorderly behavior, conduct unbecoming of a member, repeated misconduct and violations of House rules and ethical standards.
Barzaga, a first-term lawmaker from Dasmariñas and the son of the late Cavite Rep. Elpidio “Pidi” Barzaga Jr., had already been suspended twice for 60 days before the House moved to expel him. The earlier sanctions stemmed from ethics findings involving his conduct and social media activity, which the chamber said fell below the standards expected of members.
The ethics committee, chaired by 4Ps party-list Rep. JC Abalos, said Barzaga’s conduct disrupted House proceedings and undermined the decorum of the chamber. The House framed the expulsion as an assertion of institutional discipline, saying its rules require members to observe standards of conduct inside and outside formal proceedings.
The Constitution gives each chamber of Congress the power to determine its rules, punish members for disorderly behavior and, with the concurrence of two-thirds of all members, suspend or expel a member. Suspensions are limited to 60 days, making expulsion the most severe disciplinary sanction available to the House.
The action immediately left Cavite’s 4th District, which covers Dasmariñas, without a sitting representative. The Commission on Elections has said Barzaga’s expulsion does not automatically disqualify him from seeking public office again. Comelec Chair George Garcia has described the expulsion as administrative in nature and not, by itself, a permanent bar from running.
Comelec has been studying possible dates for a special election, including August 22 or August 29, 2026, but no final schedule had been formally announced as of June 5. The poll body has also said it would have to address funding for any special election because the vacancy was not part of its earlier electoral preparations.
Separately, the National Bureau of Investigation filed another complaint involving Barzaga on the same day as the expulsion vote. NBI Director Melvin Matibag asked the House to sanction Barzaga over social media posts about the Senate shooting incident, saying the posts accused NBI personnel of entering the Senate for an alleged assassination attempt. The bureau also said it was studying possible criminal complaints. That NBI complaint was distinct from the House ethics case that led to Barzaga’s expulsion.
The distinction is important. The House vote that removed Barzaga from office was based on the ethics committee’s findings on disorderly behavior, repeated misconduct and violations of House rules. The NBI complaint involved a separate set of social media posts and remains a separate matter.
The expulsion is not a criminal conviction and does not resolve any separate civil, criminal or administrative case outside Congress. It is an internal disciplinary action, imposed by the House after its ethics process concluded that Barzaga’s conduct crossed the chamber’s line between dissent and disorder.
