The Manila Times
(UPDATE) MALACAÑANG on Sunday said Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano is used to holding on to power, citing the leadership crisis at the House of Representatives six years ago when Cayetano refused to step down as speaker. “This is not the first time that he has not given up his position, even though there is already someone else who should be sitting and performing a duty,” Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said in Filipino in an interview with DZMM. “As long as he can manage not to yield his position, it seems that is what he will do,” she said. Castro was referring to the leadership row in the House of Representatives in October 2020 when Cayetano, who had a term-sharing agreement with Lord Alan Velasco, refused to give up the speakership. A majority of 186 lawmakers gathered at the Celebrity Sports Plaza in Quezon City and declared the post of speaker vacant. They then elected Velasco as speaker. Castro said a similar situation is happening at the Senate, with Cayetano not recognizing the change in leadership that transpired last June 3. Twelve senators elected Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian as Senate President Pro Tempore and effectively as the acting Senate President. New committee chairpersons were also elected, including Sen. Erwin Tulfo as chairman of the Blue Ribbon Committee, replacing Sen. Pia Cayetano. Cayetano insisted he is the “legitimate, legal, and moral Senate President.” “Four former Senate presidents have said it themselves — don’t cling to your position. It should be for the country, and not yourself. It’s no longer believable that you want to stay in position to serve your countrymen,” Castro said. Cayetano pointed to the Palace as a major player behind the impasse, accusing it of having a hand in his ouster. Castro denied the claim, saying that Cayetano has no one else to blame but himself for the current disarray in the Senate. “Now he is giving a different narrative that all the chaos in the Senate has nothing to do with him and make it appear that it Malacañang is doing it,” she said. Castro stressed it wasn’t President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. who issued the “lock and load” order that triggered the Senate shooting incident, nor did the president have a hand in the escape of Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa. “He throws this to the Palace and then makes it look like he is the one who is clean and kind and without blemish? Is that the right narrative to use for the people who are now in turmoil because of the chaos in the Senate?” Castro said of Cayetano. Weakness On Sunday, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Cayetano’s penchant for livestreaming — including running the Senate via Facebook Live — reflected his “weakness” on both the law and the facts. The “new” majority led by Gatchalian came to power after Sen. Francis Escudero, who used to be with Cayetano’s bloc, switched sides. Lacson said practically everyone who matters no longer recognizes Cayetano as Senate chief. “The Executive Department, House of Representatives, Integrated Bar of the Philippines, law deans, law professors, former Senate presidents, and many others do not recognize Senator Alan Cayetano as the President of the Senate. So, what is he?” Lacson wrote on X. “When you’re strong on the law, pound the law. When you’re strong on the facts, pound the facts. When you’re weak on both... mag-Facebook Live ka na lang (just do Facebook Live),” he said. Lacson described Cayetano as “pathetic and detached from reality” after Cayetano said he would serve as presiding officer in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial on July 6. He also dismissed Cayetano’s claims that he selectively implicated some personalities and covered up for others in the flood control mess. “Lie pa more, kung saan siya masaya (He can tell more lies, whatever makes him happy),” Lacson said in response to Cayetano’s 50-minute livestream. “The fact that the Ombudsman and the Sandiganbayan have already validated the Blue Ribbon Committee’s recommendations belies Cayetano’s accusations,” he added.
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