Lacson says he rejected offers to join ‘civil-military’ junta

Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson on Sunday said that he received, and ignored, offers to join a “civil-military junta” aiming to remove President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte from office.

In an interview on Super Radyo dzBB, Lacson said the offer was made by some retired military personnel.

“Dinededma ko nga eh, kasi meron pa ngang offer na maging part of ng junta eh, ng council eh,” he said.

(I am ignoring it, because there’s also an offer to be part of the junta or council.)

“Madaming malikot ang isip, kasi pag ganitong merong crisis, lalo nang napakatalamak ang katiwalian, minsan di mo na din [mapipigil] yung iba na mag-isip ng kung ano-ano. Siguro, in their passion para mabago yung sistema kasi naging systemic kasi yung corruption. Doon sila nanggagaling,” he added.

(There are a lot of people with wild ideas, because when a crisis like this happens and wrongdoings are prevalent, sometimes you can’t [stop] some people from thinking a lot of things. I guess, it’s in their passion to change the system since corruption has become systemic. That’s where they come from.)

He also urged the public to continue the call for accountability relating to the flood control projects, but not at the expense of the Constitution.

“Ang panawagan ko rin, ako personally, short of resorting to violence, 'wag humupa yung galit ng ating mga kababayan. Tuloy-tuloy lang yung ating mga kababayan na tigilan na yung katiwalian, tigilan na yung corruption,” he said.

(My personal call is, short of resorting to violence, I hope the anger of our countrymen does not subside. I hope Filipinos will continue to fight against wrongdoings, and stop corruption.)

Malacañang, in a statement on Sunday, welcomed Lacson’s reaction and stated that the calls for a “transition council” only meant to remove Marcos from his position.

"We welcome Senator Lacson's straightforward and unambiguous reaction on that issue, given that the move to change the leadership through a military-backed reset violates our Constitution. The people behind this so-called ‘transition council’ have only one goal: to remove President Marcos, Jr. not for the country, not for the Filipinos, but for their own vested interests,” said Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro.

Meanwhile, Lacson said that there were already movements being made to hold individuals accountable for the flood control mess.

He also shared that the Senate was actively creating reforms to ensure a fair transparent 2026 budget process.

“Kami din, kung ano yung magagawa namin sa Senate, yun ire-reform namin yung budget… Iba na yung takbo ng aming direksyon papunta sa 2026 budget. Ayaw na namin mag-insert. The Senate, I’m happy na we’re leading the way sa pangunguna ni Finance Chairman Gatchalian. Maganda yung tinutumbok namin. Halos magkakaisa kami, majority, minority… Parang isa na lang ang aming direksyon na gustong tahakin, maging transparent itong budget para di na maulit itong 2023, 2024, 2025,” he said.

(Us too, what we can do in the Senate is to reform the budget… Our direction towards the 2026 budget is now different, since we no longer want to insert. I am happy that the Senate is leading the way with Finance Chairman Gatchalian. We have a good path. We are all joined together, majority, minority… We all seem to be going towards one main direction, which is to be transparent with the budget so there’s no repeat of 2023, 2024, 2025…)

Earlier, the senator also urged the public to remain non-violent in their calls for accountability, but pushed for pressure on accountability for anomalous flood control projects to continue.

"I don't want public outrage to lessen, so long as people remain non-violent. If public anger diminishes, the government might slacken (its) efforts,” he said, adding that the initial results in the fight for accountability are due to pressure from the citizens.

“But this is so long as the outrage does not turn violent, like the Sept. 21 protest where some protesters damaged some traffic lights," he said in Filipino. — BM/KG, GMA Integrated News