Drilon meets with JPE

MANILA, Philippines - After sitting down with the head of the Nacionalista Party (NP), Sen. Franklin Drilon continued making the rounds in his bid for the Senate presidency by meeting with the leader of what may soon be the minority bloc, incumbent Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.

Drilon revealed meeting with Enrile on Thursday at a hotel in Makati City. He said they discussed the issue of the Senate presidency and the role of the minority in the 16th Congress.

Enrile, one of the leaders of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) senatorial slate in the May 13 elections, has joined his allies in the Senate in accepting the fact that they would now become the minority in the 16th Congress following the election of nine administration Team PNoy candidates.

During his meeting with Drilon, Enrile gave his assurance that the members of UNA and the rest of the minority bloc in the Senate would play the role of constructive opposition to the Liberal Party-led majority.

“We will not be obstructionist,” Drilon quoted Enrile as saying.

Enrile gave assurance the minority would not prevent the passage of legislation that the administration deems necessary to address national issues such as poverty and unemployment.

Since Drilon has emerged as a candidate of the administration for the Senate presidency in the 16th Congress, the matter of the Senate leadership inevitably cropped up during the meeting.

“Senator Enrile expressed no objection to my seeking the support of the senators presently identified with him or the so-called macho bloc so that we can all work together on measures that can improve the lives of our people,” he said.

The “macho bloc” in the Senate is composed of the current leaders of the Senate namely Enrile, Senate President Pro-Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III and Gregorio Honasan.

When the 16th Congress opens on July 22, the new minority bloc would have two new members, Senators Nancy Binay and JV Ejercito Estrada.

In a previous interview, Drilon noted anyone seeking the Senate presidency would have to talk to all the senators and try to get at least 13 of them to support his or her bid.

Drilon has met with NP president Sen. Manuel Villar Jr., whose party would continue to have five members in the Senate despite the end of his term this month.

The NP in the 16th Congress would be composed of Senators Alan Peter Cayetano, Cynthia Villar, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Antonio Trillanes IV and Pia Cayetano.