Sherwin Gatchalian signs payroll checks of Senate employees amid leadership row

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said on Wednesday that he already signed the payroll checks of Senate employees despite the leadership row at the upper chamber.

“Ngayong araw, nilagdaan na natin ang payroll checks sa Land Bank of the Philippines at inaprubahan ang paglalabas ng sweldo at benepisyo ng ating mga kawani sa Senado,” he said in a Facebook post.

(Today, we signed the payroll checks with the Land Bank of the Philippines and approved the release of the salaries and benefits of our Senate employees.)

“Kinilala na tayo ng mga financial institution bilang authorized signatory para sa financial transactions ng Senado,” he added.

(Financial institutions have already recognized us as the authorized signatory for the Senate's financial transactions.)

Gatchalian earlier in the day assured that the salaries and benefits for some 2,000 Senate employees would not be affected by the ongoing leadership row with Senator Alan Peter Cayetano.

He said in a virtual interview that he already signed the chamber's automatic debit arrangement (ADA) with the state bank as well as the approval of the promotion of some employees.

The Senate remains divided by a leadership dispute between one bloc headed by Gatchalian and the other by Cayetano.

Cayetano earlier proposed a power-sharing arrangement to keep Senate operations running smoothly, but Gatchalian turned down the offer.

“Sa kabila ng ingay sa pulitika, tuloy ang trabaho ng Senado sa ilalim ng ating pamumuno, kabilang ang pagtupad sa obligasyon nito sa mga empleyado,” Gatchalian further said in his latest post.

(Despite the political noise, the work of the Senate continues under our leadership, including fulfilling its obligations to its employees.) —Vince Angelo Ferreras/RF, GMA News