Senate President Pro Tempore Ping Lacson confirmed that he advised his close friend and ally, Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, not to underestimate the Senate minority bloc.
Speaking at the Kapihan sa Senado forum on Thursday, September 11, Lacson said the nine-member minority should not be dismissed, pointing out that they still hold considerable numbers.
“’Yan ang sinabi ko kay Senate President (Sotto), sabi ko labing-lima tayo, siyam sila, wag mo maliitin yung 9 and yung attitude ni SP, wag natin balewalain kasi mga kapwa-Senador, tratuhin natin sila, ikaw kasi you are the Senate President of the entire Senate,” Lacson explained.
Lacson stressed to Sotto that the majority’s 15 votes are thin and fragile. He warned that, like former Senate Presidents Migz Zubiri and Chiz Escudero, Sotto could face a coup at any moment.
According to some sources, Senators Pia Cayetano—because of her brother, Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano—and siblings Camille and Mark Villar, who earlier withdrew support from Escudero to back Sotto, could serve as potential “swing votes.”