Senate Minority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III suggested on Wednesday that the recent upheaval in the Senate leadership was a calculated move to derail the Blue Ribbon Committee’s investigation into multi-billion peso flood control anomalies.
In a radio interview, Sotto pushed back against allegations that the committee, led by Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, was suppressing evidence.
Instead, he argued that the probe’s aggressive deep dive into corruption had spooked influential figures, leading to a plot to unseat both himself and Lacson.
“Baligtad ang narinig ko sa ibang kasama namin. Hindi sa pagtatakip. Baligtad na masyadong binubulatlat na nadadamay ang mga kasama namin.”
The statement follows reports that Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa supported the installation of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano as the new Senate President due to “dissatisfaction” with how the Blue Ribbon Committee handled the inquiry.
Sotto, however, dismissed the idea that the committee was protecting anyone, noting that their findings had already implicated high-profile officials.
“Hindi tama ‘yun. Hindi ako pwedeng sumang-ayon doon na pagtatakip siya. Sino pagtatakpan?”
Sotto specifically noted that the investigation had grown teeth, even mentioning former House Speaker and Leyte Representative Martin Romualdez.
“Sino pinagtatakpan? Si Martin may sabit na nga ‘yun.”
According to Sotto, the reorganization was not about efficiency, but about removing Lacson from his post to stifle the investigation.
He emphasized that the only way to strip Lacson of his chairmanship was to first dismantle the standing Senate leadership.
“And the only way to remove Senator Lacson as chairman is to remove me as Senate President.”
Sotto concluded that this political maneuver is a “more truthful” explanation for the leadership shakeup than the narrative that the Blue Ribbon Committee was failing its mandate.