By Camille Milan
MANILA — Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian was formally elected Senate president on Wednesday after obtaining the votes needed to lead the chamber during a special session of the Senate.
The leadership vote came after Sen. Joel Villanueva joined the emerging majority coalition, giving Gatchalian the support required to assume the Senate’s top post.
The new majority bloc is composed of Gatchalian, Villanueva, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Migz Zubiri, and Senators Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, Risa Hontiveros, Francis Pangilinan, Bam Aquino, JV Ejercito, Chiz Escudero, Raffy Tulfo, Erwin Tulfo, and Lito Lapid.
With his election, Gatchalian becomes the fourth Senate president of the 20th Congress. He succeeds Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, who was removed from the Senate presidency on June 3 amid a leadership struggle that has divided the chamber.
Following Cayetano’s ouster, Gatchalian was elected Senate president pro tempore. However, questions arose over the validity of the leadership transition because only 12 senators were present during the proceedings, falling short of the number traditionally required to elect a Senate president.
The dispute escalated on Tuesday when Cayetano and several of his allies filed a petition before the Supreme Court seeking to nullify the election of the Gatchalian-led Senate leadership. The petition argues that the session lacked a legitimate quorum, rendering the leadership votes invalid.
Among those supporting Cayetano’s legal challenge are his sister, Sen. Pia Cayetano, along with Senators Loren Legarda, Imee Marcos, Rodante Marcoleta, Camille Villar, Mark Villar, Robin Padilla, Christopher “Bong” Go, detained Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, and Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, whose whereabouts have remained publicly undisclosed.
The latest development marks a significant shift in Senate leadership and sets the stage for a potentially landmark legal battle over the chamber’s internal rules and the validity of actions taken during the contested session.
ia/
