MANILA, Philippines – Amid controversies on his alleged misuse of Senate funds, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile on Monday submitted a motion declaring his position vacant.
The move, however, was rejected by a majority of the senators present during Monday afternoon's session. The senators voted 11-3 against Enrile's motion.
"I move that the position be declared vacant," Enrile said in a privilege speech, expressing his willingness to give up the position for Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago, who was absent from the session due to a reported ailment.
Reports said Santiago was on sick leave. Six other senators were not present during the session.
Responding to Senator Tito Sotto's move to reject the motion, 11 senators voted to retain Enrile as the tribunal's leader.
Only senators Antonio Trillanes IV, Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel and Enrile voted for the motion while Senators Joker Arroyo and Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos abstained from the voting.
Before attempting to step down, Enrile criticized the media, Santiago and Trillanes for spreading stories on the "cash gifts" for senators during the Christmas break.
The result of the voting, meanwhile, disproved Trillanes' earlier claim that a majority of the senators are for the ouster of Enrile.
Ethics complaint
Before Enrile's attempt to resign, the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) filed an ethics complaint against him and the 22 other senators over the Christmas cash gifts.
"We have material legal interest to see to it that taxes are appropriated, disbursed and used properly and legally," said Dante Jimenez and Martin Dino, founding chairman and president of VACC.
The VACC said Enrile, Senate president since November 2008, committed “acts that affect integrity and that of the Senate as an institution†by allocating and disbursing the sum of P1.6 million to each senators except to four as "Christmas cash gifts, disguised as MOOE which is unconscionable, immoral and arbitrary.â€
The four include Santiago, Trillanes and the two Cayetanos.
Santiago has not been a respondent in the complaint affidavit but Jimenez clarified that the lady senator is included in the 22 other respondents in the VACC’s complaint.
Aside from the additional P1.6 million MOOE, all the senators received additional P250,000 ‘cash gifts’ but Santiago returned her own check after the controversy came out in the public.
Trillanes admitted the Office of the Senate President allocates MOOE to every senator every month except last December when he and three others did not receive additional MOOE.
The VACC demanded that the senators should ‘voluntarily return or refund’ the full amount of "Christmas cash gifts."