The Senate is gearing up for a busy schedule in the coming months as it resumes regular sessions on Monday, May 4, following a month-long recess.
Senators are preparing to tackle priority measures endorsed by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC), even as the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte looms on the horizon.
In a recent interview, Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said the Upper Chamber is ready to handle the impeachment complaint once the House of Representatives transmits the Articles of Impeachment this week.
“We will act on it with dispatch… Definitely, forthwith,” Sotto said, noting that the Senate will balance the trial with its legislative agenda.
According to Sotto, once the Articles are received, he will immediately inform the plenary and refer the matter to the Committee on Rules for appropriate action, including setting the timetable and initial procedures for the trial.
The Senate is also set to resume hearings on flood control anomalies. Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said he will present his Chairman’s Progress Report on the Blue Ribbon Committee’s partial findings, even though the report has yet to garner enough signatures for plenary consideration.
“As Blue Ribbon Chairman, I owe it to the Filipino people to update them on what happened after seven to eight hearings. Many are not updated, and false narratives are spreading that we are covering up for some and targeting others,” Lacson said.
He added that the report’s contents have already been overtaken by events.
Lacson said he may deliver his privilege speech on May 4 or 5, possibly including additional documents or evidence not tackled in earlier hearings.
Once presented, the report may be shared with agencies such as the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Ombudsman to aid in case buildup.
The panel also plans to invite lawmakers, including former Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, as well as former soldiers who claimed to have delivered large sums of cash to personalities linked to anomalous flood control projects.
Lacson said hearings could be held before adjournment sine die on June 6, while balancing schedules with the possible impeachment trial.
“Assuming the Articles of Impeachment are transmitted to the Senate, we will have to make mornings vacant during the trial and session days so we can hold committee hearings,” Lacson explained.
Legislative agenda
Among the governance and political reform measures the Senate aims to prioritize are the proposed Anti-Political Dynasty Law, which seeks to regulate political succession within families, and the Party-List Reform Act, aimed at refining representation in the lower chamber.
The Senate is also set to deliberate on the proposed Independent People’s Commission Act and the Right to Information Act, both designed to strengthen transparency, accountability, and public oversight of government institutions.
Economic and fiscal measures on the agenda include proposed amendments to the Bank Secrecy Law, revisions to the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act, and a review of the Estate Tax Amnesty program to boost revenue collection while easing taxpayer compliance.
Other bills up for discussion include amendments to the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) Act, the Waste-to-Energy bill, revisions to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), the Rice Tariffication Law, and a measure creating a Department of Water Resources. (Hannah Torregoza)
