We’re not sleeping on the job – Padilla

MANILA, Philippines — Apparently feeling alluded to, Sen. Robinhood Padilla yesterday chided former Senate president Franklin Drilon for calling the attention of his former colleagues to lack of decorum in the current Senate, saying that while they may be “noisy,” they were not sleeping on the job.

“I hope my former colleagues are not onion-skinned. I prefer to comment on what the public perceives to be an erosion of the prestige of the Senate as an institution, brought about by the lack of decorum of certain senators,” Drilon said without naming any person.

“The Senate is a different institution. People look up to it as a chamber of responsible statesmen. I’m not saying our senators today are irresponsible. What I’m saying is they must project an image which would enhance the dignity of the Senate as an institution,” he added.

Padilla went viral on social media over a video recording of him during a committee hearing combing his mustache that he said he let grow for his role as writer Marcelo del Pilar in an upcoming film.

He stressed the current Senate is serious in addressing the country’s problems.

“The Senate is not in the business of comedy because we inherited many problems facing the nation from the honorable senators who came before us. These are serious problems that need solutions,” Padilla said.

He described himself as someone “from the masses,” and that the Senate now does its job of passing legislation instead of looking “honorable.”

On Drilon’s comment about their noise, Padilla said there is no violation in the Senate rules about voicing views in the plenary.

“A senator giving inputs during session is not a violation but a parliamentary procedure allowed by the Rules of the Senate. A senator who talks to his or her constituents is not a liability but a humble fulfillment of obligations,” Padilla said.

“Our service should not be judged by the way we look but on who brought the government closer to the people. Get used to the new face of the Senate – young and no-nonsense,” Padilla said.

Meanwhile, Padilla and his colleague Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian defended Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri from Drilon’s calling him “Mr. Congeniality.”

“While he is often called, with reason, ‘Mr. Congeniality,’ he must draw the line, because upholding and restoring the prestige of the Senate is a burden on his shoulder,” Drilon said.