SEN. Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri yesterday stepped down as Senate President and was replaced by Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero, just two days before Congress adjourns for its sine die break.
Congress will go on their sine die break starting on May 22 and will resume sessions on July 22 in time for the State of the Nation Address of President Marcos Jr.
Zubiri delivered his resignation speech during yesterday’s plenary session where thanked his colleagues for their trust and confidence. He was elected leader of the Senate in July 2022.
“It has been my greatest honor – the greatest honor of my life as a public servant and my biggest challenge,” he said on the floor.
In his speech, Zubiri said one of the reasons why he resigned as Senate president was because “I failed to follow instructions from the powers that be.” He did not elaborate.
“I have never dictated my position to any of you and I always supported your independence – which is probably why I face my demise today. I failed to follow instructions from the powers that be. I have listened to my colleagues throughout my Senate presidency, and again I listen to them today as we head into a new period for the Senate,” he said.
“I fought the good fight. If I have ruffled some feathers in doing so, if I have upset the powers to be, then so be it,” he also said.
Zubiri said he will now be an independent member of the Senate, but will keep his options open to join the minority bloc.
After Zubiri’s resignation, the body elected Escudero as the new Senate chief after he was nominated by Sen. Alan Cayetano.
Sen. Jinggoy Estrada was elected as the new Senate president pro tempore after Sen. Loren Legarda resigned from her post.
Sen. Francis Tolentino is the new majority leader, replacing Sen. Joel Villanueva, who also quit his post.
Escudero took his oath administered by Sen. Mark Villar, in the presence of his wife, actress and fashion icon Heart Evangelist.
Escudero thanked Zubiri and the senators who formed part of the former Senate president’s team for leading the chamber since the start of the 19th Congress in July 2022.
He also asked his colleagues to do away with the bloc system as they are all senators who should be working as one.
“Walang my team, walang your team para sa akin. Walang SP Migz, wala ring Chiz para sa akin. Ang tingin ko sa bawat isa sa atin ay mga miyembro ng nag-iisang Senado (For me, there’s no such thing as ‘my team, your team.” There’s no SP Migz, there’s no SP Chiz. I look upon each one of us as a member of one Senate),” he said.
Zubiri said hoped that Escudero will continue to adhere to the rules of the Senate, saying there are neophyte senators who have been asking for “concessions.” He did not name names.
“If we do that, the relevance of the Senate will diminish. We have to stick to the rules,” he said in a mix of Filipino and English.
OUSTER MOVE
In a press conference after announcing his resignation as Senate president, Zubiri told reporters that 14 senators moved to oust him. He did not name them.
He said the move started early this year when he publicly opposed the People’s Initiative (PI), which was pushed by members of the House of Representatives as the mode to amend the 1987 Constitution.
Zubiri had slammed House members for their attempt to diminish the role of the Senate in Charter change moves. He also allowed the Senate to conduct an investigation into the PI, a move which administration allies at the lower chamber repeatedly questioned in their daily press conferences.
Aside from opposing the PI, Zubiri said another reason for the coup was when he rejected Cha-cha timeline set by the House leadership, who wanted senators to fasttrack their public consultations on proposed Resolution of Both Houses No. 6 (RBH 6) and approve it before they went on their Holy Week break last March.
Zubiri had stood firm that proposed revisions to the Charter needed to be reviewed and deliberated exhaustively and said that the approval of RBH 6 would not be rushed.
The RBH is still being discussed in the subcommittee panel of the Committee on Constitutional Amendments, which is chaired by Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara, who quit his post after Zubiri resigned as Senate president.
The subpanel is close to concluding its public consultations, with the last two hearings set in Cebu and Cagayan de Oro cities this week.
Zubiri said the so-called nail on the coffin on his ouster was when he allowed Sen. Ronald dela Rosa to conduct hearings on the “PDEA Leaks” scandal.
Dela Rosa is the chairperson of the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, which is conducting hearings on reports that former senator and now President Marcos Jr. was the subject of an alleged narcotics operation in 2012 for using illegal drugs. The operation supposedly did not push through after it was blocked by former Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa.
“Maraming nagsabi sa akin na itigil na ang hearings. Hindi na natigil ‘yun (A lot of people told me to stop the hearings, which I did not do),” Zubiri said referring to Dela Rosa’s hearings.
“Nag-umpisa yan sa PI. Ang gusto nila sumunod ang Senado (It started during the PI campaign. They want the Senate to just follow them). One shining moment is the PI,” he also said.
He added: “Hindi tayo sang-ayon sa timeline sa Cha-cha. Diyan ko naramdaman na may sama ng loob. Ang akin lang naman, gusto ko lang manatili ang independence ng institution. Napa-aga ang pag-resign ko (I was also against the Cha-cha timeline. Now that is when I felt that there were people who harboring hard feelings. I only wanted to to maintain the independence of the institution. That led to my early resignation),” Zubiri said
He also said that “this is the second coup attempt on me” but did not give additional details.
Zubiri said the ouster move became apparent on Wednesday last week, when he received information that 14 senators have met to plan the change of leadership in the Senate.
He said that there were even some senators who sent him text messages telling him that they are still supporting his leadership, but during the weekend, they changed their minds and crossed to join the other senators.
He said the senators who remained by his side were Villanueva, Legarda, Angara, and Senators Joseph Victor Ejercito, Aquilino Pimentel III and Risa Hontiveros.
“I just felt heart-broken not because of the position…I’m heart-broken because of those who committed to be steadfast with us, all of a sudden, biglang nawala (but all of sudden, they switched sides),” he said.
He said Dela Rosa, who did not support the move against him, will surely be booted out as chairman of the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs. “I presumed kasi isa ito sa puno’t dulo (I presumed because the [PDEA Leaks investigation] is one of the root causes of this).”
Zubiri refused to comment when asked if he sees the hand of Malacañang behind the ouster move.
GOODBYE CHACHA
Zubiri said the election of Escudero as the new Senate leader means the death of Cha-cha dead in the upper chamber.
“Goodbye Cha-cha, wala na. It is all canceled. Sen. Escudero is anti-Chacha. As far as we are concerned, Cha-cha is dead,” he said.
Zubiri, Legarda, and Angara filed RBH 6 which seeks to introduce amendments to the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution to allow 100 percent foreign ownership of public utilities, higher education, and advertising.
Last Friday, the Senate sub-committee on Constitutional Amendments chaired by Angara kicked off its first of three regional consultations in Baguio City.
Zubiri said the next hearings scheduled in Cebu and Cagayan de Oro cities will be canceled.
‘RESPECTED FIGURE’
Speaker Martin Romualdez said he is looking forward to working with Escudero as he thanked Zubiri “for his outstanding service and leadership as Senate President.”
“Sen. Escudero has long been a respected figure in our political landscape, known for his dedication, integrity, and commitment to the Filipino people,” the Speaker said in a statement. “I would also like to express my heartfelt appreciation to Sen. Juan Miguel ‘Migz’ Zubiri for his outstanding service and leadership as Senate President. Sen. Zubiri’s dedication and hard work have significantly contributed to our legislative achievements and the advancement of our nation. His efforts in fostering a spirit of cooperation within the Senate have been invaluable.”
Romualdez expressed optimism that the new partnership between the Senate and the House will be productive. “Our nation faces numerous challenges and opportunities, and it is through unity and collaboration that we can effectively address these and work towards a brighter future for all Filipinos,” he said. — With Wendell Vigilia
