Sen. Pacquiao kayos four LP stalwarts
By Aquiles Z. Zonio
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 28 Feb 2017
SENATE -- Neophyte Senator Emmanuel D. Pacquiao unleashed on Monday afternoon a knockout punch combo against four Liberal Party stalwarts thereby delineating the once blurry demarcation line between the administration and opposition senators in the Upper Chamber.
At the start of the Senate regular session, Sen. Pacquiao stood up and moved to declare vacant the position of Senate President Pro Tempore previously held by Senator Franklin Drilon.
No one stood up to oppose the motion, hence, it was approved.
Drilon was replaced by former Senate minority leader, Sen. Ralph Recto.
Other LP senators stripped of their committee chairmanships, on motion of Sen. Pacquiao, were Francisco ?Kiko? Pangilinan (Agriculture), Paolo Benigno ?Bam? Aquino (Education) and Risa Hontiveros (Health).
Sensing they were outnumbered, the four LP senators neither whimpered nor did they try to put up a token resistance while being deposed one after the other.
Sen. Cynthia Villar was elected chair of Agriculture committee; Sen. Chiz Escudero as Education committee chair; and Sen. JV Ejercito as head of Health Committee.
Sen. Pacquiao said he took the initiative as he was already sick and tired of the never-ending political squabble at the Senate.
?It?s high time to unmask the real color of fellow senators who are just pretending to be with the majority but deep in their hearts they want to topple down the duly elected president of this country,? Sen. Pacquiao said.
Shortly after their removal from key Senate posts, the four LP senators declared alliance with the minority block now led by Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV.
Sen. Pacquiao expressed dismay that until now LP could not yet move on from a shocking defeat during the 2016 election.
?After election, we should forget our party affiliation and work hand-in-hand with whoever is elected by the people. They should remember that ?Vox Populi, Vox Dei (The voice of the people is the voice of God).?
Sen. Pacquiao believes opposition is a desideratum in a vibrant democracy, but ?not to the extent of derailing the passage of the proposed measures or disrupting, if not destroying, the growth and development of our country.?
The senator from Mindanao claimed there are so many pending bills which could not be passed or acted promptly by the Senate due to political spectacle often perpetrated by LP senators to bring down the current leadership.
?They (LP Senators) should give the Duterte administration the benefit of the doubt. They should give the president a chance to institute meaningful reforms in our society and economy,? Sen. Pacquiao said.
It can be recalled that during the Senate session on Sept. 19 last year, Sen. Pacquiao led the removal of Sen. Leila Delima as chair of the Senate committee on Justice and Human Rights.
Sen. Pacquiao sensed that Sen. Delima was just using the Justice and Human Rights Committee to boost her political stock and to destroy the image of President Duterte.
Sen. Delima was tagged by the New Bilibid inmates as protector of illegal drug trade inside the prison facility.
Late last week, Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court issued an arrest warrant against Sen. Delima.
She is now detained at the PNP Custodial Center in Camp Crame pending resolution of the drug-related charges filed against her by the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Aquiles Z. Zonio.
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