Now that the dust is beginning to settle, it is increasingly becoming clear that going to the Supreme Court as a last resort may not be needed after all, considering that Sen. Joel Villanueva has signaled that he would attend a special session of Congress that may be called by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at any time.

It is no secret that Senator Alan Peter Cayetano would not, by any stretch of the imagination, file a petition before the Court questioning the validity of the actions taken by the Gatchalian bloc. If he does that, he is ipso facto admitting that the steps taken were presumptively regular and therefore should remain the status quo until the Tribunal intervenes and resolves the issue.

With Villanueva’s attendance, however, the ongoing wrangling in the Upper Chamber could be resolved and, in effect, legitimize without question the impending election of Senator Sherwin Gatchalian as Senate president.

Surely, he would make it appear that he is doing so because he wants to protect the institution and promote the welfare of the people through meaningful legislation. But everyone knows that if he had no pending criminal cases before the Sandiganbayan, he would not have entertained jettisoning his group in favor of the other.

This development would understandably leave Senator Jinggoy Estrada to “feel sore” (no pun intended), because had he anticipated that both his “friends” would jump to the other side, he might have done the same to avoid jail time.

As I have been saying for several months now, Malacañang is bent on doing anything it can to convict and disqualify Vice President Sara Duterte from holding public office. This is the only way it can protect itself from any possible retaliation or even retribution from her should she become president in 2028.

While 16 votes may be difficult to achieve, I would not be surprised if this administration utilizes its resources to woo more senators into joining the majority group and miraculously pull off a conviction. Perhaps it would target the Villar siblings or even Cayetano to get 16 warm bodies.

The funny thing about this whole mess is that everyone seems heavily driven by political survival, vested interests, and partisan positioning. What is unfortunate is that they sacrifice the delivery of basic services, paralyze crucial legislative work, and waste public funds.

Ultimately, it is the public that suffers.