Metro Manila, Philippines – Twelve senators elected Sherwin “Win” Gatchalian as president pro tempore replacing Alan Peter Cayetano, and concurrent acting Senate president on Wednesday, June 3.
Gatchalian has a solid 11-minority bloc vote plus Sen. Chiz Escudero from the group of Cayetano, who appeared at the session hall. The rest snubbed the session for the third consecutive day.
All positions were declared vacant and new committee chairpersons were named.
Gatchalian explained the reason for the leadership change, and then adjourned the session to resume on the last Monday of July for the State of the Nation Address.
“For clarity, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano is no longer Senate President after the Senate, with 12 senators present and a quorum declared based on the recognized base number of 22 under Avelino v. Cuenco, voted to declare all positions vacant, including the presidency of the institution,” the new majority said in a statement.
The bloc clarified that the only reason Gatchalian was not elected Senate president was they needed at least 13 votes to elect a new Senate leader.
“Pero ito ang malinaw at mahalaga ngayon: bakante na ang lahat ng posisyon, tapos na ang dating liderato at dapat magpatuloy ang trabaho ng Senado para sa taumbayan,” the group added.
[Translation: But what is clear and important is this: all positions are vacant, the previous leadership is over and the work of the Senate for the people must continue.]
Meanwhile, Cayetano called the development an “illegal” coup, insisting that what transpired violated the Constitution.
“I am still the legitimate, legal, moral, Senate president of the Republic of the Philippines,” the lawmaker said in a social media live briefing.
The Senate has been at an impasse since Monday, June 1, when Sen. Jinggoy Estrada was arrested for graft and plunder charges. The then majority bloc, in solidarity with Estrada, did not attend sessions until Wednesday.
In a media briefing, Sen. Erwin Tulfo said at least 13 votes are needed to change the Senate president under the Constitution.
Cayetano was elected Senate president on May 11 ousting Tito Sotto via a surprise appearance of Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa after months in hiding.
The Senate was on a whirlwind of events since that Monday, including a shooting scare between in-house security and National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents, and the escape of Dela Rosa – who was accorded Senate protective custody from a standing International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant — hours after the standoff.
NBI agents with the ICC warrant scuffled with Dela Rosa when he reappeared at the Senate premises, but failed to arrest him. The warrant was in relation to his stint as national police chief and implementer of the Duterte administration’s bloody drug war.
Dela Rosa has since been in hiding again.
The Senate convened as an Impeachment Court for the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte on Tuesday, May 19. Gatchalian now takes over from Cayetano as court presiding officer.
