Former Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday, June 3, strongly condemned the move to unseat him, declaring he will not step down and refusing to recognize the authority of the new Senate majority bloc composed of 12 senators.
Cayetano dismissed the election of Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian as acting Senate President, saying there are no valid grounds for such a move.
“So wala pong ground para magkaroon ng acting president,” Cayetano said in a Facebook Live session.
He branded the maneuver as an “illegal coup d’état” and insisted that unless the bloc secures 13 votes, he remains the legitimate Senate leader.
“Because under the Constitution, under the rules of the Senate, they need 13… I can go as Senate President even as senator anytime,” he stressed.
Cayetano also warned that Gatchalian’s appointment as acting Senate President was illegitimate, saying, “Hindi nila ako tinanggal. Naglagay ng acting… Ingat kayo diyan.”
He accused his rivals of undermining the Constitution and attempting to derail the Senate’s work, particularly the scheduled Blue Ribbon Committee hearing led by his sister, Sen. Pia Cayetano.
He vowed the hearing would proceed despite efforts to block it.
“The Filipino people deserve to know the truth. You can try to stop us, but you will be stopping the Filipino people,” Cayetano said, adding that the leadership dispute only validates his warnings about attempts to seize control of key committees. (Hannah Torregoza)
