Senate Minority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III believes his recent removal from the Senate presidency was strategically tied to the looming impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Sotto made the statement following a leadership shake-up where thirteen senators voted to elect Senator Alan Peter Cayetano as the new head of the upper chamber. When asked by media if the impending trial was the catalyst for his ouster, the veteran lawmaker did not mince words about the timing.
“Probably. That’s a very strong possibility because if i was Senate President, once the House approves the Articles of Impeachment and sends it to us, i will constitute and convene the impeachment court tomorrow,” Sotto said.
With the House of Representatives already securing 256 votes to impeach the Vice President, Sotto noted that the fate of the proceedings now rests entirely with Cayetano and the new 13-member majority bloc.
Despite the coup, Sotto maintained that he harbors no ill will toward his colleagues—including former allies Senators Loren Legarda, Mark Villar, Camille Villar, and Pia Cayetano—who voted for his removal.
He noted that leadership changes are a natural part of the institution’s history.
“We always expected (it). I’m here for a very long time, i have experienced this for around six times since 1992 to the present, yung palit-palitan namin so as i said, i serve at the pleasure of our peers so there’s must be a plan of something, maybe God has a different plan,” he added.