Pangilinan: Senators in shakeup did not hamper Senate work

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Francis Pangilinan branded as “inaccurate and factually erroneous” the Senate president’s statement Monday that the shakeup at the chamber was due to “hampered” legislative work.

Pangilinan, president of the Liberal Party, said in a statement that the reorganization was meant to ensure that the Senate would toe the line on issues that might negatively impact the administration and was not to improve its efficiency.

“It is therefore inaccurate and factually erroneous to say that the reorganization was due to hampered work,” Pangilinan said.

Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III said in a statement on Monday that to best achieve the Senate’s legislative agenda clear lines had to be drawn.

“Work in the Senate has been hampered by the blurring of lines between the majority and the minority to the detriment of public interest,” Pimentel said.

He said LP senators who were sidelined in yesterday’s dizzying reorganization at the upper chamber did not hamper the Senate’s legislative agenda.

On the contrary, Pangilinan said, members of the LP bloc had more bills in the advanced stages of legislation.

“How can work in the Senate be hampered by the now minority members, including four from the Liberal Party, when almost 70 percent (20 of 29) of the bills now a couple of steps into becoming a law are being defended by us?” Pangilinan asked.

Bills are defended in plenary by committee chairpersons or by a bill's authors or sponsors.

Pangilinan said that the only other law passed so far was that on the Sangguniang Kabataan, which was sponsored by Sen. Bam Aquino, an LP member.

He also pointed out that three of the Duterte administration’s priorities, death penalty and the lowering of criminal age of responsibility, are with the committees that their block handled. These two are with the Senate’s Justice committee, which Sen. Leila De Lima chaired before being ousted on a motion by Sen. Manny Pacquaio.

Pacquiao also moved to remove the LP bloc senators from their leadership positions.

Pangilinan added that legislators who voted against the 2017 national budget, Senators Panfilo Lacson and Sherwin Gatchalian, are not members of the LP.

Pangilinan also defended the new members of the minority from Pimentel’s remark regarding instances where the former majority ended up divided instead of closing ranks.

The LP president explained that the only instances in which the majority in the Senate was divided were on the issues of the Marcos burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani, on extrajudicial killings, corruption at the Bureau of Immigration and the Lascañas testimony.

“In these instances, the LP asserted the independence of the Senate and it was in these instances that senators allied with Malacañang opposed our efforts,” Pangilinan said.

Pangilinan also assured the public that the minority would continue to speak against actions and programs that threaten people’s lives and livelihoods.

He also gave his assurance that they would work with the majority in the Senate to support the policies of the administration that would improve people’s lives.