Drilon: House Speaker wants to weaken Senate

Sen. Franklin Drilon (File photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Sunday expressed fear that the continued attacks by House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on the Senate was part of a plan to abolish the upper chamber and go for a unicameral system of legislature being envisioned in the new federal form of government.

In a radio interview, Drilon called on Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III to defend the independence and integrity of the Senate but his appeal was only met with a lukewarm response.

‘Word war’

“I have already defended the Senate by responding to what the Speaker has said,” Pimentel said in a text message to reporters, asking why Drilon “(would) want me to continue a word war with the Speaker.”

“(Drilon) belongs to the Liberal Party while the Speaker and I belong to the PDP (Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan). Hence, why should I do that?” said Pimentel, who is president of PDP-Laban, the party of President Duterte.

Senate performance

Pimentel and Drilon were referring to Alvarez’s recent statements in which he belittled the Senate performance in passing measures compared to the House.

In the interview, Drilon said he was alarmed that Alvarez’s attacks on the Senate was part of a “deliberate and sustained effort to weaken and embarrass the Senate as an institution in order to lay the groundwork for the abolition of the Senate and pave the way for a unicameral Congress, which is preferred by the House of Representatives.”

He pointed out that in the House, he had seen placards bearing the words “One Congress” and asked what this meant.

Drilon said the Senate could not pass a measure just because the House had done so, as the upper chamber was also part of the check and balance system.

He said the independence of the Senate was being “seriously guarded by the senators.”

Senate independence

“That is why Senate President Pimentel, he should protect and defend the integrity and independence of the Senate. He must rise above partisan political interest to defend the Senate regardless of his political affiliation. Otherwise, the Senate unfortunately becomes irrelevant as an institution of democracy in our system of governance,” Drilon said.

Drilon said he did not think Alvarez’s bid for Congress to have a plebiscite on changes to the Constitution would be achieved by May this year, or together with the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.