BY WENDELL VIGILIA

SPEAKER Prospero Nograles is caught in the crossfire between Malacañang and his ousted predecessor, Rep. Jose de Venecia Jr., who has stepped up his offensives against President Arroyo in a series of privilege speeches he has been delivering since he was unseated last February 5.

"It’s a difficult task but we need to keep on trying (to strike a balance)," Nograles said.

Nograles however said De Venecia’s "ultimatum" for the President to stem graft and corruption was uncalled for, describing De Venecia’s call for a moral revolution a "motherhood" proposal.

"Most of his proposals have already been addressed by the Executive, the Legislative and the Judicial branches of government. We can’t do everything overnight," he said.

De Venecia has said he would speak "from time to time" to expose shenanigans in the Arroyo government, including the alleged massive electoral fraud in the 2004 presidential elections.

Nograles said De Venecia "should not impose his own version of moral recovery on anyone, much more on President Arroyo."

Rep. Edno Joson (Ind., Nueva Ecija) said Nograles needs to accommodate everybody on the floor "or adopt a maximum tolerance attitude, then CPR (calibrated pre-emptive response) or ‘calibrated pahiya response’ if anybody goes out of line."

De Venecia began his attacks on the night of his ouster last week when he recited a litany of graft and corruption charges against the Arroyo administration.

Last Wednesday night, De Venecia continued his offensive against the President, warning of a "firestorm" in the wake of the controversy surrounding the national broadband network project.

De Venecia supported the testimony of Senate star witness Rodolfo Noel "Jun" Lozada Jr. who was allegedly abducted by police and airport officials last Tuesday as part of alleged efforts to prevent him from testifying on the NBN-ZTE project.

The Wednesday session was presided by one of De Venecia’s loyal allies, deputy speaker Raul del Mar who adjourned the session on the motion of Rep. Teofisto Guingona III (NP, Bukidnon), a member of the minority bloc.

Last Tuesday night, deputy speaker for women Ma. Amelita Villarosa, drew heavy flak from anti-De Venecia congressmen when she hastily adjourned the session after Kampi president Luis Villafuerte delivered a privilege speech detailing De Venecia’s "sins" to the House.

While Villarosa voted for De Venecia’s ouster, questions on her loyalty continue to linger because of the surprising ruling.