Sotto tried to convince Lacson to stay as Blue Ribbon chair, but 'he has decided'

Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III revealed that he made efforts to persuade Senator Panfilo "Ping” Lacson from stepping down as chairperson of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, following the latter’s resignation amid a sensitive corruption probe.

In a television interview on Tuesday, Sotto said he had been trying to convince Lacson to reconsider his decision before the resignation letter was formally submitted.

“Sinusubukan ko na ng dalawang araw. Hindi pa siya nagsa-submit ng sulat noon kaya sinusubukan ko. Pero itong pagkaka-submit niyang ito, palagay ko hindi na natin kayang kumbinsihin (I had been trying for two days. He hadn’t submitted a letter yet, so I kept trying. But now that he’s submitted it, I don't think we can convince him anymore),” Sotto said. 

He explained that Lacson’s letter was not a request for permission, but a firm notice of his resignation.

“This resignation letter is a notice of leave. Hindi ito asking permission. Kung asking permission, puwede nating pag-usapan sa plenaryo o kaya ako as Senate President. Pero ito, desidido siya (This resignation letter is a notice of leave. It’s not asking for permission. If it was, we could discuss it in plenary or I could, as Senate President. But he has decided),” he said. 

Lacson tendered his resignation on Monday, citing dissatisfaction among some senators regarding the direction of the committee’s ongoing investigation into alleged anomalies in flood control projects, an inquiry that had begun to implicate certain members of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

“In the course of the current investigation, which has implicated some senators in the flood control mess, a number of our colleagues have expressed disappointment with the 'direction' of the Blue Ribbon Committee, which this representation chairs," Lacson stated in his formal resignation letter submitted to Sotto.

Despite stepping down as chairperson, Lacson remains a member of the Blue Ribbon Committee.

Sotto also noted that he already initiated a caucus with majority senators to be held at noon on Wednesday to discuss the resignation and determine the next steps for the committee.

“So pag-uusapan namin. As a matter of fact, I called a caucus bukas ng tanghali, kaming mga members ng majority, para pag-usapan itong nangyari sa resignation ni Senator Lacson (So we will discuss. In fact, I called a caucus tomorrow at noon with the majority members to talk about Senator Lacson's resignation),” he said. 

Asked about a potential successor to Lacson, Sotto said that any recommendation from the outgoing chair would carry significant weight.

“Sigurado, para sa akin, kung sino ang rekomendasyon ni Senator Lacson would have a very strong edge over anybody else (For sure, for me, whoever Senator Lacson recommends would have a very strong edge over anybody else),” he said. 

Earlier Tuesday, Sotto bared an initial list of senators who may replace Lacson as the new chairperson of the blue ribbon committee, including Senators Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, Raffy Tulfo, Pia Cayetano, Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, and Risa Hontiveros. 

In an ambush interview in Quezon City, Senator Jinggoy Estrada said several senators are qualified to take over the committee, but named Senator Pia Cayetano as a potential candidate.

“There’s Senator Pia Cayetano, who once held the chairmanship of the Blue Ribbon Committee. She, being a member of the majority,” Estrada said.

In June 2024, former Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri announced Pia Cayetano’s designation as the first-ever female lawmaker to chair the upper chamber’s Blue Ribbon Committee, replacing then-Senator Francis Tolentino.