Pre-Martial Law senators’ families speak out: ‘This isn’t the Senate we knew’

MANILA, Philippines – Relatives of senators who served before the Martial Law era under the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos issued a rare collective statement rebuking the current Senate over controversies hounding the institution.

“This Senate stands disgraced before the nation,” the statement read on Monday, June 1.

“A great number among the majority walk beneath the dark cloud of accusations so grave that in any decent republic they would compel shame, resignation, or prosecution — plunder, obstruction of justice, abuse of power, even crimes against human life itself. The Senate, once the forge of our laws, has become a refuge for those who brazenly violate them,” it added.

The statement was signed by representatives of the families of the late senators Alejandro Almendras, Pepe Diokno, Eva Estrada Kalaw, Raul Manglapus, Sergio Osmena Jr., Ambrosio Padilla, Emmanuel Pelaez, Francisco Rodrigo, Jovito Salonga, and Lorenzo Tañada.

The statement comes weeks after a Senate leadership change that installed a majority composed of senators facing various legal controversies.

Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, for one, is a fugitive with an outstanding International Criminal Court warrant over his role in the drug war, while Senator Robin Padilla is accused of facilitating his escape.

Three other senators – Joel Villanueva, Jinggoy Estrada, and Francis Escudero – are implicated in the flood control corruption scandal, while Senator Rodante Marcoleta is facing a plunder complaint over questions surrounding his campaign donations.

Meanwhile, the Villar siblings, Mark and Camille, are embroiled in a market manipulation controversy.

“Count the lawmakers who have become lawbreakers. Count the men and women who invoke the Constitution while desecrating its spirit. Count those who demand the people’s respect while proving themselves unworthy of it,” the relatives of the late senators also said. “And then ask yourselves: is this a Senate to admire? Or a Senate to mourn?”

“They dishonor the Republic. They degrade the institution they pretend to defend. And by their conduct, they insult every Filipino who still believes that public office is a public trust,” they added.

Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano has kept the top leadership post in the upper chamber for over two weeks now, although it is a fragile majority that remains at risk of being toppled.

Senator Raffy Tulfo on Monday said that two senators from the majority bloc may transfer to the minority amid dissatisfaction over a proposal to amend Senate rules and allow lawmakers to participate in plenary sessions remotely.

“If you observed the demeanor of some senators in the majority during the commotion, some of them were not happy,” Tulfo said in an interview with GMA’s Unang Hirit. – Rappler.com