Senate Minority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III on Monday, August 18, raised questions over the initial allotment of 10 Commission on Appointments (CA) seats for the Senate majority bloc, five of whom are aligned with the so-called “Duterte bloc.”
Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva nominated 10 senators for the CA majority seats:
- Alan Peter Cayetano
- Bato dela Rosa
- JV Ejercito
- Jinggoy Estrada
- Bong Go
- Rodante Marcoleta
- Imee Marcos
- Raffy Tulfo
- Joel Villanueva
- Mark Villar
Villanueva explained that the ratio followed an 80-20 split between the majority and minority, translating to 10 majority members and 2 minority members.
But Sotto, a former Senate president, pushed back:
“It should be members of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, six [then]… three of them should be in the CA. Members of the Nacionalista Party are five, so therefore, 2.5 should be in the CA. And then, the rest are single members of each party and, therefore, they could talk to the other members so that the .5 can be a total of one for each representation.”
He then threw a challenge to the chamber:
“If this body elects to follow the Supreme Court decision on the Articles of Impeachment, why can’t they follow the decision of the Supreme Court when it comes to the computation of membership in the CA?”
Sotto also warned the majority against railroading the allocation:
“Just a while ago, the Senate president pro tempore talked with us. Now, the Senate majority leader will suddenly stand up and he will be ramming down our throats – 10 members of the majority all of a sudden. We’re expecting more cooperation and more… better treatment for the minority because we’re trying our best to treat you as well, because we can make it harder for you if this is what you want.”
Villanueva, however, stood firm:
“No one is rubbing of anything because we’re doing this on the basis of the Supreme Court decision… Can tradition on informal agreements between senators be cited in determining how many members from the majority and minority blocs will be represented in the CA? This representation submits that we stick to the established mathematical formula in the use of Supreme Court decision as guidance.”
Later, Alan Cayetano withdrew his nomination to allow more time for discussion, trimming the initial list down to nine majority members. The CA election is set to resume on Wednesday, August 20.