The sergeant-at-arms of the House of Representatives of the Philippines () is an officer of the Philippine House of Representatives, whose duty is to ensure order within the House of Representatives Building Complex—the seat of the lower chamber of Congress—enforce the rules of the House, and protect the lives of its officers, members, personnel, guests, and the property within its premises. The mace of the House—serving as its symbol of authority—situated at the foot of the speaker’s rostrum during sessions, is also in their custody, acting as the warrant empowering the sergeant-at-arms to enforce order in the floor of the chamber upon the speaker’s directive.

The current sergeant-at-arms of the House is retired Brigadier General Ferdinand Melchor dela Cruz.

Powers and duties

According to Rule VII, Section 20 of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the duties and powers of the sergeant-at-arms are:

To attend all sessions of the House unless excused by the Speaker or the Presiding Officer, and personally or through his designee(s), all meetings of the committees; To strictly enforce rules relating to admission to the session hall, the galleries, offices, corridors and premises of the House building; To ensure that employees under the office of the Sergeant-at-Arms observe proper behavior and faithfully perform their duties; To implement orders and serve all processes issued by authority of the House or by the Speaker; To secure and maintain order in the session hall, galleries, offices, corridors and premises of the House building during sessions, during the conduct of meetings of committees and during such other proceedings or activities of the House whether or not the House is in session; To secure the safety of the Members while in the House premises or in any other place as the Speaker may direct; To secure the properties of the House; To recommend and implement upon the direction of the Speaker, security management systems, policies and programs that will ensure the maintenance of order in the House and its premises, protect the safety of the Members and employees, visitors and other persons who are within the premises of the House on official business, and the preservation of properties, equipment, facilities, documents and records of the House; and To act as custodian of the Mace, which shall be the symbol of authority and shall be borne by the Sergeant-at-Arms while enforcing order on the floor.

Section 21 also states that "the Sergeant-at-Arms shall prepare and submit to the House, through the Speaker, at the end of every fiscal year, a performance report relative to programs and activities relating to the security and maintenance of order in the House."

List

House of Representatives (1945–1973) Portrait Name Term start Term end LegislatureNarciso DioknoMay 25, 1946January 19502ndCommonwealthCongress1st CongressAntonio GarciaJanuary 1950January 25, 19542nd CongressNarciso DioknoJanuary 25, 1954January 30, 19623rd Congress 4th CongressSimeon SalongaJanuary 30, 1962September 23, 19725th Congress6th Congress7th Congress

Batasang Pambansa (1978–1986) Portrait Name Term start Term end LegislatureRaoul CautonJune 12, 19781979InterimBatasangPambansaAnselmo Avenido Jr.19791984Cesar Pobre1984March 25, 1986RegularBatasangPambansa

House of Representatives (1987–present) Portrait Name Term start Term end Legislature Serapio TaccadJuly 27, 1987July 27, 1992 8th Congress Bayani Fabic July 27, 19922008 9th Congress10th Congress11th Congress12th Congress13th Congress14th CongressHoracio Lactao2008July 26, 2010Nicasio RadovanJuly 26, 2010July 25, 201615th Congress16th Congress Roland Detabali July 25, 2016July 30, 2018 17th CongressRomeo PrestozaJuly 30, 2018July 22, 2019Ramon ApolinarioJuly 22, 2019October 12, 2020 18th CongressMao AplascaOctober 12, 2020December 6, 2021Rodelio JocsonDecember 6, 2021July 25, 2022Napoleon TaasJuly 25, 2022September 23, 2025 19th Congress20th CongressMelchor dela CruzSeptember 23, 2025present

See also Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate of the Philippines

References