Senate to hold session on Dec. 2 to allow for clean-up after fire

The Senate will hold its plenary session in the afternoon of Tuesday, December 2 while Senate offices will be on skeletal staffing following a fire that hit a commercial area on the third floor of the Senate building.

According to an advisory issued by Senate secretary Renato Bantug Jr., the Senate’s plenary session shall be called to order at Tuesday, 1 p.m. as instructed by Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III.

This is “in view of the water seepage at the Session Hall resulting from the suppression measures to contain the fire that affected the office of the Legislative Technical Affairs Bureau” on the third floor of the Senate building on Sunday morning.

Sotto also authorized the Senate secretariat and Senate Proper offices to be on skeleton staffing or alternative work arrangement on Monday, December 1.

This is to “allow the cleanup works and facilities/equipment check to proceed unhampered.”

“Except for the staff of the Legislative Budget Research and Monitoring Office (LBRMO) and the Maintenance and General Services Bureau (MGSB), all other Secretariat and Proper employees are not required to report for work tomorrow unless directed by their respective heads of offices,” the advisory said.

Sotto also instructed that for Tuesday, the heads of the Office of the Sergeant-At-Arms, Legislation, LBRMO, ODSEAR, MGSB, EDP-MIS, PRIB, MDB, and SMU should “ensure the presence of personnel that shall assist in the plenary session.”

“All other Secretariat employees need not report for work. Senate Proper employees may or may not be required to report for work at the discretion of their respective principals,” the advisory added.

On Sunday morning, a fire hit the third floor of the Senate building and was put out after two hours after reaching the second alarm. Sotto assured that important documents were safe following the fire.

“Rest assured that all pertinent Senate documents – including those of the Blue Ribbon Committee - remain intact, safe, and completely unaffected by the fire. The Senate is working closely with the BFP and internal security to ensure the continued safety of the premises and personnel and to prevent similar incidents moving forward,” he said in a statement. 

Sotto added: “The Senate’s maintenance team will be working round the clock to dry and restore the Session Hall to ensure it is fully ready for Monday’s session.” — JMA, GMA Integrated News