Senator Alan Peter Cayetano said he will not obstruct an expected move by rival senators to install a new Senate President, even as he reaffirmed that his weeks-long fight has always centered on the contested flood-control funds rather than the leadership post itself.
In a public statement, Cayetano said that following a conversation with Senator Joel Villanueva, the opposing bloc now appears positioned to assemble the votes needed to elect a new chamber leader. He said he would step aside if that happens. “To whoever this chamber lawfully elects, I extend my congratulations and my cooperation in advance,” he said, framing every Senate office as temporary and adding that “every office we hold is a loan, never a possession.”
Villanueva’s posture is widely seen as decisive. The senator, until now counted among Cayetano’s allies, said over the weekend he would attend a special session if President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. convenes one, telling a church gathering, “In the event a special session is called, we will fulfill our sacred duty under our Constitution. We will be there.” His pledge fueled speculation that he could supply the 13th vote that the Gatchalian camp has so far lacked. The Inquirer reported that Villanueva stopped short of saying how he would actually vote, stressing instead that senators should focus on their work.
Cayetano insisted the dispute was never about the gavel. He traced the conflict to the multibillion-peso flood-control scandal, describing it as a clash between those who wanted the matter exposed and those determined to bury it. He said he intends to continue pressing the issue regardless of his title, and vowed: “We will find the Masterminds. We will hold them accountable.”
The crisis dates to June 3, when 12 senators declared a quorum, voted to vacate all leadership posts, and elected Senator Sherwin Gatchalian as Senate President Pro Tempore and acting Senate President. Cayetano and his allies have rejected that outcome as unconstitutional, arguing that the chamber’s own rules require 13 votes to install leadership. The Cayetano bloc carried that argument to the Supreme Court; Tribune reported that on June 16 the group petitioned the high court to declare the June 3 proceedings void from the outset.
Cayetano reiterated that constitutional objection in his statement, calling the June 3 action void for lack of a proper quorum and stressing the matter “remains where it belongs: before the Court.” He said his deeper worry is external interference in the chamber, warning that the Senate’s independence “is not a courtesy the Executive may grant or withdraw at will.” He clarified he holds nothing personally against the colleague who may be chosen, casting his objection instead against the precedent of leadership being decided “beyond its own walls.”
He also questioned the substance of the looming special session. Cayetano noted that 21 priority measures the President flagged for June passage remain unfinished, with the only such bill on the calendar — the Anti-Political Dynasty measure — still at interpellation. He argued the chamber risks enacting a national orchid designation and two grants of citizenship rather than the economic legislation he said the public urgently needs, and questioned whether the session’s real purpose is simply to legitimize the Palace’s preferred Senate President.
On one point, Cayetano offered immediate cooperation: he said he would readily back measures to fund relief and rebuilding for Mindanao following the recent earthquake, calling such work the proper business of the Senate.
Closing his statement, Cayetano leaned on a play on his title, telling the public that while he may give up the role of Senate President, he remains honored to serve as their “PS” — their Public Servant.
