Lacson on Legarda's switch: She could have told us

Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Tuesday said that his colleague Loren Legarda, who replaced him as Senate President Pro Tempore, could have informed the then-majority of her decision to switch sides following the surprise leadership change on Monday.

“My sentiment, and I think my colleagues in the former majority share this, it is sad that Sen. Legarda, one of our originals in the former majority, did not inform us of her decision," he said in a press statement.

"I am not taking anything away from her decision to join Sen. Cayetano but we just hoped she would at least have told us, instead of surprising us,” he added.

Senators on Monday voted for a leadership change ahead of the transmittal of the Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte.

Legarda was one of the 13 senators who voted in favor of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano as the new Senate President.

Last February, Lacson revealed that there were attempts to offer the Senate presidency to Legarda.

But Legarda said that she had no idea about the talks of her being elected as Senate President.

Further, Lacson described the leadership change at the Senate on Monday as “ugly.”

“Any way you look at it, regardless of your political persuasion, what happened on Monday was ugly. It was an unpleasant sight,” he said.

Meanwhile, Senator Risa Hontiveros, who is now part of the minority, also expressed dismay over the developments at the Senate on Monday.

“As always, we can disagree. We must challenge each other. But the Senate must not become a mockery in the face of the Filipino people, especially when the public is looking to us to faithfully perform our Constitutional duties,” she said in a statement.

For his part, Senator Robin Padilla denied that the change in leadership at the upper chamber is meant to interfere with the impeachment process.

“The senator assured the public that any impeachment proceedings, should they formally proceed before the Senate, will be undertaken in accordance with the Constitution, applicable rules, and the Senate’s institutional responsibility to preserve fairness, impartiality, and judicial independence,” he said in a statement.

“At a time when public discourse is highly charged, we urge prudence and restraint against unfounded speculation that may unnecessarily erode trust in democratic institutions.” —Vince Angelo Ferreras/LDF, GMA News