Sotto affirms colleagues’ stand against ‘no-el’

By Camille A. Aguinaldo, Reporter
SENATE President Vicente C. Sotto III on Thursday said he disagreed with the proposal to postpone the 2019 midterm elections through a people’s initiative, saying that an enabling law was needed to enforce this method of amending the Charter.
“Perhaps I will answer it with a question. And that is the reason why perhaps I’m not supporting the proposal. Why is there a need? I think that is a question that needs to be answered first,” he said at Thursday’s Kapihan sa Senado media forum.
“In order for us to conduct a people’s initiative, we need to pass an enabling law,” he added.
He also affirmed that his colleagues in the Senate will fight any attempt to cancel the midterm polls or to extend the terms of elective officials. He added that the Senate would maintain its independence as it would decide “impartially” on the issue of Charter change.
“The Senate was created to be independent, fair, impartial but courageous. And therefore it was created, I believe, to withstand and we should withstand not only pressure from public opinion but also pressure from the presidential powers,” Mr. Sotto said.
“So we will listen but we will digest what we receive and perhaps decide impartially. And we will always decide, I believe that I share the sentiment of those in the…Senate, we shall decide on what will be good for the majority of the Filipinos,” he added.
If the President asks the Senate to prioritize federalism, Mr. Sotto said they would treat it as a “presidential request.”
“But there are so many issues to hurdle. How are we going to prioritize it? We will pass a joint resolution for a Constituent Assembly. It should be voting separately. How long are we going to do it? If we are going to push that, it’s not easy,” he said.