PDP-Laban: No rift among Rody allies

MANILA, Philippines – The PDP-Laban yesterday downplayed reports of infighting among allies of president-elect Rodrigo Duterte in the Senate.

PDP-Laban deputy secretary general Ben Ranque said all political parties, including the Nacionalista Party of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, have pledged support and alliance with the incoming administration party to help steer the legislative agenda of the incoming administration.

“A majority of senators has already spoken and thrown their full support to Sen. Aquilino ‘Koko’ Pimentel III, the lone PDP-Laban (member) in the Senate,” Ranque said.

He said the issue should not be focused on the race between Cayetano and Pimentel for the Senate presidency but on the support of senators to the administration of Duterte.

Ranque said Cayetano’s challenge to the decision of the Senate majority is a clear defiance of the coalition agreement with the Nacionalista Party.

“It’s ironic that after forging the alliance, the NP announced its support to Cayetano to be the next Senate president,” he said.

Ranque said the senators who signed the resolution supposedly supporting Cayetano may have been misled into believing that Duterte meddled in their affairs.

Cayetano, the defeated runningmate of Duterte in the last May elections, has been making noise about getting the support of 15 senators in the run for the Senate presidency.

Speaking to reporters last Friday in Davao City, Cayetano belittled the efforts of Pimentel and the group of Sen. Vicente Sotto III, as he turned down any committee chairmanships. 

Cayetano added he does not need any committee to support Duterte, also citing the differences between senators-elect Panfilo Lacson and Leila de Lima as a possible hindrance to giving the incoming president full support for his legislative agenda.

Shut up

Sotto, for his part, virtually told Cayetano to shut up on his assertions that the emerging super majority supporting Pimentel will not be able to push the legislative agenda of the Duterte administration.

Sotto maintained Pimentel will be voted as Senate president upon the opening of the 17th Congress despite Cayetano’s claims that the deal will not work in favor of Duterte’s legislative agenda.

“Koko will be Senate president, I will be majority leader. I know how to run things,” Sotto said.

As majority leader, Sotto vowed to calendar all the measures deemed important to the incoming administration, possibly including the efforts to shift the form of government and the move to restore the death penalty.

“If I say it will pass, it will pass! As long as we have the majority supporting the agenda, I will allow those against to speak but in the end, I will call for a vote. I’m an expert in blocking bills but also an expert in passing them,” Sotto said.

Sotto was asked to react on Cayetano’s criticisms that the super majority supporting Pimentel’s bid to get the top Senate post – a coalition with the PDP-Laban, Nationalist People’s Coalition and the Liberal Party – would just keep the status quo under the Duterte administration.

Sotto took exception to Cayetano’s statements on Friday that the new majority will not be able to usher the change being espoused by the incoming president.

Lacson, on the other hand, said Cayetano’s statements are counterproductive.

He urged Cayetano to stop being bitter by resorting to political intrigue just because he was unable to reach his ambition to lead the chamber.

He said Cayetano should toe the line of the Senate majority.

Lacson clarified he is not against many of Duterte’s major policy directions related to crime and corruption, as alleged by Cayetano.

“I’m not at all against president-elect Duterte as averred by Senator Cayetano. In fact, I continue to believe that the mayor can really make a difference in reducing crime and corruption in our country,” Lacson told The STAR.

“I merely commented on his statement undermining the integrity and independence of the Senate because I felt it was my obligation to do so,” he added, referring to his stand that the Senate may conduct inquiries on any wrongdoing despite Duterte’s warning that lawmakers should not preempt his moves.

Instead of sowing intrigue, Lacson said Cayetano should just respect the decision of the majority to designate Pimentel as the next Senate president.

“Save for  that, I’d rather not comment any further on Senator Alan’s obvious political trickery. No amount of intrigue and self-serving statements coming from him or anybody can alter what the majority of senators of the 17th Congress consider as a sealed and delivered Senate presidency to Senator Pimentel,” Lacson said.

Ranque, for his part, urged Cayetano that if he considers himself an ally of the new administration, he must set aside his desire to seek the Senate presidency since this will run counter to the agreement with the NP.

He maintained that Duterte, as party chairman, kept his distance in the selection of the Senate presidency because of his respect for the legislature.

Ranque said it is just proper that the leadership of the Senate should be given to the administration party members.

“It’s just coincidental that Senator Pimentel is the only PDP-Laban member in the Senate and the party—including the newly accepted members and their allies in the Senate—supported Pimentel,” he said.

Ranque said the political parties that have forged alliances with the party in power are expected to support Pimentel.

“Just like what is happening in the House of Representatives, the support for (Davao del Norte) Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez as Speaker, we are also expecting that the Senate president will be a PDP- Laban member,” he said.

Ranque added that Duterte has promised a Cabinet post for Cayetano after the one-year ban expires.

“The Senate needs a full time Senate president that will help steer the legislative agenda of incoming President Duterte,” he stressed. – With Christina Mendez, Alexis Romero