Senate ‘shakeup’ motivated to deter impeachment, row with China: Azcuna

The alleged ongoing coup efforts in the Senate may stem from motives deeper than halting the impending approval of a committee report that could send to jail three sitting senators, who are being implicated in the alleged corruption scheme in flood control projects.

Retired Supreme Court associate justice and 1987 Constitution framer Adolfo Azcuna told DAILY TRIBUNE that the persistent attempts to change the Senate’s current leadership may be primarily motivated by the ongoing impeachment proceedings, the continued row between the Philippines and China, and preparations for the 2028 national elections.

Attempts to unseat Senate President Tito Sotto have been allegedly being aggressively pushed by the minority bloc, particularly by Senator Imee Marcos, who was recently removed from the powerful committee on foreign relations amid the ongoing word war between senators and the Chinese embassy.

Marcos was among the nine minority senators who did not sign a Senate resolution condemning China’s indecent remarks against Philippine officials, though she filed a separate resolution, urging restraint to “avoid unnecessary escalation of diplomatic tensions.”

“Since the Senate is a policy-making body, it is possible that they want to have their own agenda as to the course of the nation with respect to, let’s say relationship with China, accountability of officials, including the pending impeachment attempts, and of course, the election that is coming in 2028,” Azcuna explained in a phone interview.

“These could all be related to these attempts to change the leadership of the Senate,” he continued.

The Senate, Azcuna added, holds a critical role in “shaping foreign policy because it approves international treaties,” which shall be reviewed by the committee on foreign relations.

Sotto attributed the botched attempt to oust him to Marcos’ removal as head of the panel in favor of Senator Erwin Tulfo.

Marcos, however, countered that her removal “had nothing to do with whatever it is that he thinks is going on in the Senate.”

This is because the Senate resolution criticizing China in defense of senators and other officials, like Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela, “was not even referred to the foreign relations committee.”

The nine senators who refused to sign the resolution in question were mostly composed of the so-called “Duterte bloc” and voted against the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte to proceed for trial.

Although the Supreme Court voided the impeachment case with finality for being unconstitutional for violating the one-year bar rule, a set of fresh impeachment cases was filed anew to remove the VP from office.

Last week, Senator Robin Padilla, a known ally of the Dutertes, openly admitted that he would back efforts to change the leadership in the Senate if the impeachment case against Duterte, still pending in the House of Representatives, reaches the Senate for trial.

The VP, who is facing accusations of graft and corruption over the alleged questionable use of her multi-million peso confidential funds, is seen as the frontrunner in the next presidential elections and consistently leads surveys as a preferred successor to Marcos.