MANILA, Philippines – A day after the 12-person “new majority” installed Sherwin “Win” Gatchalian as Senate president pro tempore and acting Senate president, his camp and Alan Peter Cayetano‘s bloc are still both fighting for control over the upper chamber.

Gatchalian held a 9 am press conference on Thursday, June 4, doubling down on his camp’s legal justification to hold a session on Wednesday, June 3, even with only 12 warm bodies on the plenary floor.

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What Gatchalian has going for him is Malacañang and the House of Representative’s recognition of his acting Senate presidency, ousting Cayetano.

Gatchalian had earlier ordered Senate staff to work from home on Thursday, as a preemptive measure to ensure the peace and order in the chamber, which is still haunted by the trauma of a shooting incident weeks ago.

The night before, Cayetano, asserting his leadership, sent a memo to Senate staff saying that all hearings previously scheduled will still proceed and directed all Senate officials “to render their full cooperation and assistance in connection with the said hearing.”

In an advisory on Thursday morning, Gatchalian authorized Senate employees who reported on-site to leave the office beginning at 10 am, since there’s no “official business scheduled.”

Gatchalian said this is “in consideration of the safety, security, and well-being of Senate personnel in light of the anticipated activities within and around the Senate premises.”

‘Canceled’ blue ribbon probe

A blue ribbon hearing on flood control corruption had been scheduled at 10 am on Thursday, but was canceled on Wednesday, based on the committee schedule on the Senate website, which remained unchanged on Thursday. One of the resource persons, lawyer Levi Baligod, said in a social media post on Wednesday that Senator Pia Cayetano, the panel chair then, withdrew their invitation to the hearing.

On Thursday, however, Baligod and his clients, the former soldiers who implicated President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and former speaker Martin Romualdez in the flood control corruption scandal, were able to enter Senate premises as guests of the Cayetanos. Under Senate rules, resource persons cannot enter Senate premises without any valid invitation but they can do so as senators’ guests.

The Cayetano-allied senators lamented the lack of blue ribbon committee staff for the Thursday hearing, which was supposed to have been canceled that day. Senator Erwin Tulfo was earlier elected as chairman of the panel, and scheduled the hearing on Monday, June 8.

Senator Alan Cayetano, in his speech, warned Senate employees of committing a criminal offense should they bar his guests from entering Senate premises. Aside from the Cayetano siblings, the other senators with them were Rodante Marcoleta who presided the hearing, Robin Padilla, and Imee Marcos. – Rappler.com