Sotto denies Imee Marcos replaced due to not signing reso vs China attacks

Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III on Friday said that Senator Imee Marcos not signing the proposed resolution which condemned the recent statements of the Chinese Embassy against certain Filipino government officials was not the reason for her replacement as chairperson of the Senate foreign relations committee. 

Sotto said the majority bloc agreed during a meeting that a major committee like the Foreign Relations should be chaired by a member of their bloc. Since Marcos is one of the nine members of the minority bloc, he said that committee chairmanship has to be transferred to another senator. 

“Nung una, hindi naman namin ginalaw ‘yun. Originally na kay Senator Imee Marcos ‘yun. Hinayaan namin, thinking that later on, you know, pwede naman kaming magkasama-sama. But apparently things didn't work out that way,” the Senate President said in a Zoom interview. 

(At first, we didn't touch the committee. It was originally handled by Senator Imee Marcos. We let her keep it, thinking that later on, you know, we could work together. But apparently things didn't work out that way.) 

“At merong importanteng mga treaties at saka agreements na naka-pending doon na malaki ang concern ng mga members of majority. So we discussed it and we decided that we should give it to a member of the majority,” he added. 

(And there are important treaties and agreements pending in the committee that are of great concern to members of the majority. So we discussed it and we decided that we should give it to a member of the majority.) 

It was Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson who confirmed Thursday that Marcos is set to be replaced as chairperson of the Senate foreign relations committee next week.

The committee is primarily responsible for all matters relating to the relations of the Philippines with other nations generally; diplomatic and consular services; the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; the United Nations Organization and its agencies; multilateral organizations; all international agreements, obligations and contracts; and overseas Filipinos.

According to Sotto, Senator Erwin Tulfo has long shown interest in heading the committee. 

But the Senate President admitted that there was hope that Marcos would still join the majority bloc, that was why they opted to have her keep the chairmanship of the committee even for the meantime. 

“Walang official na gano’n… Siguro merong pabiro every now and then kapag nagkikita kami sa lounge. Same with Senator Bong Go and Senator Robin Padilla. Meron kaming mga biruan na gano’n sapagkat ‘yan naman eh, they're in line with the thinking of the majority. Independent Senate, kung ano sa tingin namin tama, doon kami,” he said. 

(There were no official talks that she would transfer to the majority. We’re just joking about it every now and then when we meet in the lounge. Same with Senator Bong Go and Senator Robin Padilla. We have jokes like that because I know they're in line with the thinking of the majority. We’re an independent Senate, and we support what we think is right.) 

To recall, 15 senators signed the draft resolution denouncing the recent public statements issued by the Chinese Embassy against Filipino officials, which they described as “contrary to accepted standards of diplomatic conduct and mutual respect between states.”

The senators called on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to take the necessary diplomatic measures to uphold the dignity of the Philippines and to ensure that relations with other states are conducted in accordance with international law and established principles of state relations. 

Marcos did not sign the resolution, but she filed a different resolution calling on all government officials and employees to exercise restraint, sobriety, and professionalism in public communications relating to foreign affairs, amid heated exchanges between Philippine and Chinese officials.

Asked if Marcos not jiving with the majority of senators when it comes to the China issue was the “last straw,” Sotto said, “I can only speak for myself. I cannot speak for the other members if they thought of that when we discussed it last Monday in the majority caucus. I can only speak for myself. Sa akin, hindi (for me, it’s not). It has nothing to do with that." 

Sotto said that the Senate is set to tackle the proposed resolution next Monday.

The Senate was supposed to adopt in the plenary session on Tuesday, January 27, the resolution, but Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano had manifested to conduct a committee hearing on the issue first. —AOL, GMA Integrated News