Gatchalian elected Senate president

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate formally elected Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday as its new president, ending a leadership deadlock that saw four Senate chiefs coming and going in less than a year.

In a special session that began at past 9 a.m., the new majority bloc of 13 elected Gatchalian unanimously.

The nine members of the faction of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano were not present when the voting through acclamation was held.

It was Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri who nominated Gatchalian. The others who voted for Gatchalian were Vicente Sotto III, Panfilo Lacson, Francis Escudero, Francis Pangilinan, Erwin Tulfo, Raffy Tulfo, Risa Hontiveros, Lito Lapid, JV Ejercito and Bam Aquino.

As he had committed last Sunday, Sen. Joel Villanueva showed up during the special session, securing the constitutionally mandated 13th vote to elect a Senate president.

Sotto was elected Senate president pro tempore; Ejercito, senior deputy majority leader and Villanueva, deputy majority leader.

Ending one of the shortest Senate presidencies in Philippine history, Cayetano formally conceded his post, less than two hours before Gatchalian convened the special session.

“The arithmetic has changed. The Constitution has not,” Cayetano said in a statement acknowledging his defeat.

“And now, after speaking with Sen. Joel Villanueva, it appears our colleagues on the other side will soon have the numbers to elect a new Senate president. I will not stand in the way of that vote,” he added.

Cayetano insinuated that Villanueva was under pressure when he made the decision to shift allegiance.

Malacañang expressed confidence the Senate under Gatchalian’s leadership would promptly act on the administration’s priority measures.

“The priority legislative bills have to be passed so we can strengthen and expand government assistance to our countrymen,” Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said, as she thanked Gatchalian and Speaker Faustino Dy III for supporting the administration’s legislative agenda.

SC petition

He and some members of his bloc have a pending petition with the Supreme Court questioning the June 3 leadership change. Asked about the status of the petition, SC spokesperson Camille Ting said: “We will have to wait for the court’s action.”

Cayetano’s brief tenure goes down as one of the shortest and most volatile in Philippine Senate history. His leadership was marred by a shooting incident on May 13 inside the Senate. It also saw a “boycott” of the session by Cayetano’s allies for three straight days.

Following the formal election of the new Senate leaders, the 13-member majority bloc immediately filled the chamber’s committee chairmanships.

Pangilinan and Lacson were elected vice chairmen of the Blue Ribbon committee. Pangilinan will also head its subcommittee for flood control investigations. Erwin Tulfo was elected chairman last June 3. Escudero opted out of membership within the committee.

Pangilinan was also elected chairman of the committees on agriculture and on constitutional amendments and justice, concurrently serving as the chamber’s representative to the Judicial and Bar Council.

Lacson, who was elected chairman of the accounts and public order committees last June 3, will also take over the ways and means committee.

Erwin was also elected chairman of the committees on social justice and on energy.

Ejercito – elected finance chairman last June 3 – was also named chairman of the committee on local government.

Aquino was tasked to head the trade and science and technology panels, apart from the basic education committee. Hontiveros now chairs the committee on women, aside from the health committee.

Villanueva will lead the committees on labor and on higher education while Zubiri will chair the foreign relations committee. Raffy Tulfo now heads the committees on public services and on migrant workers.

Sotto adds the ethics committee to his chairmanships, which also include the defense committee of which he was elected chairman on June 3.

Lapid retains the chairmanship of the committee on games and amusement to which he was elected last June 3, while the leadership of the urban planning, housing and resettlement committee went to Escudero.

Aquino, Pangilinan, Lapid and Escudero were named as the Senate’s contingent to the Senate Electoral Tribunal.

Just before session adjourned at 6:20 p.m., Sens. Mark and Camille Villar were respectively given chairmanships of the committees on banks and on government-owned-or-controlled corporations.

The House of Representatives, led by Dy, congratulated Gatchalian on his election as Senate president.

“The House remains committed to working with the Senate in advancing priority legislation, strengthening the economy and delivering meaningful reforms that benefit our people,” Dy said in a statement.

Majority Leader Sandro Marcos also welcomed the election of Gatchalian. “I have worked with him and I know how level-headed he can be. I think that’s exactly what this current political climate needs, especially there in the Senate: level-headedness and just the need for all of us to really get back to it,” he told reporters.

“The legislative work continues and our fight continues too, not just for our own interests, but in our fight for the real truth, accountability and significant service to our countrymen,” Rep. Leila de Lima said.

With the new Senate leadership, Justice Secretary Freddrick Vida said they are expecting better coordination with senators in the investigation of events that transpired at the chamber’s premises from May 11-14.

Not ruling out an outbreak of tension, the Philippine National Police (PNP) deployed 300 men at the Senate premises yesterday and around the Batasan complex in Quezon City.

“While we remain apolitical and non-partisan, our focus remains on maintaining peace and order in society amid these political tensions,” PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said. -  Helen Flores, Delon Porcalla, Daphne Galvez, Emmanuel Tupas, Evelyn Macairan