Senate minority restive over committee chairmanships

The Senate minority is restive over the majority bloc’s failure to give four of the chamber’s powerful committees to the minority.

Sen. Edgardo Angara said that based on the agreement between Senate President Franklin Drilon and Minority Leader Vicente Sotto III over the congressional recess, the majority was prepared to offer the minority the Blue Ribbon Committee and the committees on justice, education and energy.

The Blue Ribbon is now chaired by Sen. Joker Arroyo, while the justice and education committees are concurrently chaired by Sen. Francis Pangilinan. Pangilinan has chaired the education committee since its chairman Sen. Renato Cayetano fell ill and took an extended leave. Cayetano died last June 24.

"I don’t think I am violating confidence," Angara said, "but this is, and you can ask Senator Sotto and the Senate president about this, what they have discussed. What I understand was reported to me is that the majority — and this was before the recess — was prepared to offer to the minority the committees on blue ribbon, justice, education and energy."

"In exchange for that, there will now be a unity Senate... there will be no dispute over the leadership and there will be more equitable distribution of work in the committees," Angara said.

However, Angara insisted that the minority did not ask for committee chairmanship, but these were offered by the majority to the minority bloc, apparently as part of Drilon’s bid to unite the Senate during its third and last session.

"We know for a fact that (the energy committee) was offered to Sen. John Osmeña," he said. "We don’t have to formally ask for energy... the point is that we did not ask and we are not asking for any committee assignment."

He added that if the majority bloc in the Senate want a good working relationship with the minority, the members of the minority bloc will work with the majority.

"What we are saying (is that) we have some expertise on our side and ready hands to assist in the Senate," Angara said. "But we are not going to wait for crumbs that they would throw us."

During the congressional break, Senate sources said a group of senators were planning to oust Drilon because of the Senate president’s strong position against the House resolution seeking to amend the 1987 Constitution by converting both chambers of Congress into a constituent assembly.

Drilon favors Charter change via a constitutional convention, which will require the election of delegates who will amend the basic law of the land and a plebiscite to ratify the amended Constitution. Angara earlier admitted he was interested in becoming Senate president. "I will be interested if my peers will choose me... I will be an effective leader. I was very effective as a Senate president in my time."

But, Angara, who chairs the committee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes and laws, took exception to reports of a coup plot against Drilon.

Drilon, for his part, dismissed reports that he is conducting a loyalty check. "That is only a report. It is not true that there is a loyalty check."

"As far as I know, the majority and the minority blocs are supporting my leadership," Drilon said, though he declined to name who among the 21 other senators support him.