Drilon retains Senate presidency

Senate President Franklin Drilon held his seat as the Second Regular Session of the 13th Congress opened yesterday, with no senator challenging him to step down from his post.

Drilon opened and adjourned the session with no challenger in sight.

At the same time, Drilon called on Malacañang to allow democratic processes to run their course as the Senate prepares to receive the impeachment case filed against President Arroyo.

Rumors of a possible change in leadership at the Senate started last July 8 when Drilon and the Liberal Party (LP), which he heads, withdrew their support for Mrs. Arroyo and called for her resignation.

Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, one of those rumored to be interested in the Senate presidency, practically gave up on any bid to oust Drilon because she expected little support from her colleagues.

"Senator Frank Drilon and I are not going mano-a-mano (hand-to-hand) today. My attitude towards the Senate presidency is if it were offered to me and I have the archangel St. Michael beside me, I might be interested but otherwise I don’t stand a ghost of a chance," Santiago told reporters before the start of session.

She admitted she did not have the 13 votes required to take over the Senate president post.

"The choice of the Senate presidency is not an academic competition or even a professional competition. It is a question of whether you have a critical mass of senators supporting you and whether you can gain enough momentum so that you can pick up supporters along the way," Santiago said.

She was reported to be eyeing the Senate presidency and soliciting the support of her colleagues.

With Drilon effectively out of the administration bloc after withdrawing his support for the President, Santiago has now emerged as one of the most vocal supporters of Mrs. Arroyo.

Santiago described herself as "sui generis," or in a class of her own, claiming to lack popularity among her colleagues and belonging to no particular bloc.

Opposition Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile also expects the status quo to remain in the Senate since neither his group nor the administration had the numbers to oust Drilon.

"We should not rock the boat while one section of the government is being rocked in order to maintain the stability of the country," Enrile said.

"At the moment I think there will be no possibility of any disruption of the grouping in the Senate," he added.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. also conceded there was to be no immediate change in the Senate presidency since no group had gathered the required 13 votes to change the leadership.

However, he said he expected some reorganization to take place after the impeachment case against the President is transmitted to the Senate.

"We don’t know yet because at the moment, nobody has the 13 votes needed to unseat Frank (Drilon). But the situation, I think, is very fluid so I’m just anticipating some possible scenarios once the impeachment bill or charges come to the Senate," Pimentel said.

He said it is very important that the senators clearly transmit the message that "we don’t want any cover-ups and also that the proceedings will certainly be fair."

Drilon reiterated that his post was a gift from 13 senators and that he is ready to relinquish it if someone successfully challenges his leadership and musters the required number of votes.

"I have always said that my incumbency will depend upon the will of the majority of the senators," he said.

Drilon defended his decision to withdraw support from Mrs. Arroyo, saying it was a demonstration of the independence of the Senate as an institution from the dictates of Malacañang.

"We assure everyone that in this second regular session of the 13th Congress, our people will continue to see an independent Senate that is even more resolute in the pursuit of economic, political and social reforms," he said in his speech at the opening of session.

He said that while he is prepared for anything, he expects the continued support of his colleagues in his leadership.

Daunting challenges

In his speech during yesterday’s opening ceremonies, Drilon lamented that the current political crisis had been compounded by another crisis — the supposed subversion of processes outlined in the Constitution.

"We are facing daunting challenges that will test our deep faith and strong resolve to protect our nation’s highest interest," he said. "I appeal to all those who wield power: do not subvert our democratic processes; do not subvert the truth. Our people will not allow that."

Drilon said the political crisis had left the nation deeply divided and "under this environment, implementation of the needed reforms will be almost impossible."

He said since the President will not heed calls for her resignation, the impeachment process is the only way to resolve the current political crisis.

"I appeal to our people to remain calm and sober. Let us not resort to any violence. We are currently experiencing a problem but hopefully this will be over soon. Let us start the impeachment process so that the truth will come out," Drilon said.

Drilon’s concerns were also reflected in a statement issued by the LP, which responded to the offensive launched against the senator by pro-Arroyo party chairman Manila Mayor Lito Atienza.

Atienza called on Drilon to inhibit himself from the impeachment process saying the Senate president could not remain impartial in his role as a judge during the impeachment trial.

Former education undersecretary Jose Luis Gascon, speaking on behalf of the LP, said Atienza’s statement manifests the Arroyo administration’s real motives, which are to railroad the results of the impeachment and whitewash the truth about the President’s alleged impeachable offenses.

"Just because the option of resignation was offered by (Drilon) and the LP to (Mrs.) Arroyo, (this) does not in any way remove the capacity, ability and competence of... Drilon to sit in an impeachment court," Gascon said.

Once the House of Representatives secures the required 79 signatures for the impeachment complaint, the case could automatically go to the Senate, which will then act as an impeachment court.

Sen. Manuel Roxas II said the President, facing the challenges of the ongoing political crisis and solving the country’s economic and social problems, should focus on fiscal responsibility and discipline, education, the gap in infrastructure and making the country globally competitive so there would be more jobs available locally.