Senate shake-up deepens amid fresh coup rumors
The Senate announced on Wednesday a reorganization of several key committees amid persistent rumors of yet another imminent coup targeting the newly installed Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano.
The adjustments follow the May 11 vote that ousted Sen. Vicente “Tito” Sotto III—the longest-serving senator in Philippine history and the only one elected for five nonconsecutive terms—when senators perceived to be pro-Duterte mustered 13 votes to comprise the new majority.
Shortly after the resumption of session, acting Majority Leader Joel Villanueva read the second batch of new committee chairmanships, signaling a public projection of a chamber getting back to business.
However, rumors persist that a counter faction is actively quietly gathering the necessary 13 votes to unseat Cayetano. Speculation has heavily centered on Senators Francis “Chiz” Escudero and Sherwin Gatchalian as primary figures being positioned by cross-party coalitions to challenge or replace Cayetano’s fragile majority control.
Cayetano teases Gatchalian
While presiding over the session, Cayetano teased Gatchalian, saying, “I might vote for him one day.” He made the remark after noting that Gatchalian was the only one who laughed when he called Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan “the agreeable senator.”
This happened after Pangilinan suggested the second referral of a resolution about climate change to the committee on agriculture. The measure was first referred to the committee on sustainable development goals.
Gatchalian dismissed the idea of another leadership change when interviewed by the media on Tuesday. “The leadership has just changed. Let’s focus on work first, guys,” he said in Filipino.
Under the reorganization, some committee chairmanships were reassigned as senators adjusted to shifting alliances within the 24-member chamber.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson, perceived as Sotto’s closest ally in the chamber, lost the chairmanship of the powerful blue ribbon committee to Sen. Pia Cayetano, elder sister of the current Senate President. Pia Cayetano, who was previously with the Sotto bloc, retains the committees on ways and means and sustainable development goals.
Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, who chaired the blue ribbon committee that initiated an investigation of the multibillion-peso flood control corruption scandal before Lacson took over under Sotto’s leadership, was named representative of the chamber to the Judicial and Bar Council.
Two allies of the new Senate chief—Senators Robin Padilla and Imee Marcos—were elected to their old posts as heads of the committees on constitutional amendments and foreign relations, respectively. Padilla replaced Senator Pangilinan while Marcos took over the leadership of the foreign relations panel from Sen. Erwin Tulfo. Padilla also gets to keep the committees on public information and mass media, and cultural communities and Muslim affairs.
Neophyte Sen. Camille Villar, who was part of the majority under Sotto’s leadership, retained the committee on environment. In addition, she will be taking over the chairmanship of the committee on government corporations from her older brother, Sen. Mark Villar.
Mark Villar, in turn, was elected to chair the powerful committee on finance, previously held by Gatchalian.
Sotto allies lose posts
On Monday, Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda, who was also with the majority under Sotto’s leadership, was named chair of the committee on basic education, which was previously handled by Sen. Bam Aquino. Legarda also retained the committee on culture and the arts.
Other Sotto allies who lost their chairmanship positions were Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who was replaced by Sen. Bong Go in the committee on health; Sen. Raffy Tulfo, who will turn over the committee on public services to Marcoleta; and Sen. Erwin Tulfo, who will pass on the committee on games and amusements to Sen. Jinggoy Estrada.
Go also retains the chairmanship of the committee on sports while Estrada takes over the chairmanship of the committee on national defense and security, peace, unification and reconciliation from Legarda.
Sen. JV Ejercito, who abstained in the May 11 voting for Senate President, saying he wanted to be an independent, lost the committee on public order and dangerous drugs to Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who showed up after six months of absence to vote for Cayetano, but managed to escape in the early hours of May 14 from the chamber’s “protective custody.”
Villanueva is back as chair of the committee on higher, technical and vocational education, replacing Legarda.
