MANILA, Philippines - There is no rush on the part of the Senate to organize the ethics committee to take up the case of Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago against Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile.
Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano said there are more important matters that the Senate has to take up than the conflict between the two senior lawmakers.
Cayetano, who was asked by Santiago to act on her complaint against Enrile for disorderly behavior, said the earliest the committee on ethics could be organized would be next January.
“Accountability is very important here at the Senate but we have a lot of urgent matters to take up, like how to help the victims of (Typhoon) Yolanda, the budget and so we have to prioritize this,†Cayetano said.
“So we apologize to Senator Miriam and Senator Enrile. First things first, we have to start with the more important and urgent matters,†he added.
In a letter to Senate President Franklin Drilon on Monday, Santiago said the ethics committee should be organized right away in order to take up her complaint against Enrile.
A separate letter sent by Santiago to Cayetano, as chairman of the committee on rules, called for the immediate consideration of her complaint since the ethics committee has not yet been organized.
Drilon has directed Cayetano to discuss the matter of organizing the ethics committee with the members of the Senate, now that a formal complaint has been filed by Santiago.
Cayetano said he would call a caucus among the senators next week after the plenary sessions to discuss which matters would be finalized and which committees would be organized or even dissolved.
“With my apologies to them, the earliest we can organize would be in January,†he said.