PASAY CITY, Philippines — The Senate is set to release at least ₱700,000 in public funds to finance the renovation of Senate President Pro Tempore Vicente “Tito” Sotto III’s new office after it was completely cleared out by its previous tenant, Senator Jinggoy Estrada.
Senate President Win Gatchalian clarified in a television interview that the expenditure falls under the chamber’s institutional policy, which caps office renovation allowances at ₱700,000.
“Based on our policy, he (Sotto) will be given P700,000 for renovation, which in fact, won’t be enough because nothing was left inside the office,” Gatchalian said in the televised interview.
Addressing whether clearing out offices is standard protocol for departing lawmakers, Gatchalian noted that no such tradition exists, sharing his own transitions with former colleagues.
“There’s no standard practice on what should be done. In fact, based on my experience in 2016 with then (Senate Minority Leader Aquilino) Koko Pimentel (III), he gave his office to me intact,” the incumbent Senate leader recalled.
“He left the office as is, so when I transferred to his office, the renovations I made was minimal,” he said.
“The same thing with Sen. (Panfilo) Lacson, when he vacated the office for Sen. Jinggoy. He left everything intact, and you can immediately conduct business inside the office,” he added.
”We do this to save up on funds, because renovating an office is also costly. It’s best if a senator can immediately work once he transfers into his new office because it is ready to be used,” the lawmaker added.
Despite the added costs, Gatchalian acknowledged that Senate records show Estrada used his own money—not public funds—when he previously renovated the space, giving him the right to remove those additions.
However, the Senate chief expressed disappointment over how the transition was handled.
“My personal opinion only, is that out of courtesy, Senator Sotto should have been given notice of what would be done in the office because the Senate is very busy at this time,” he said.
“And we want Senator Sotto to be able to move in immediately and start working without any issues,” Gatchalian stressed.
“Lastly, because the office was stripped bare, the government would have to spend money to renovate it,” he said.