SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:00:00) Tapos i-coconnect ka na. And then kung makikita mo, although they’re always doing a good job, it’s all ad hoc at saka yung iba-ibang ahensya like say DSWD, they do a good job but they have a full-time job sa mga indigents at saka marginalized society. And the other thing is napakagaling na natin sa relief.
(0:00:23) As long as we have the access to the area. Pero mahina tayo sa rehabilitation. So ang nangyayari, for example, napakalaking sunog dito sa Manila. But nangyari ito sa Mindanao, so attention natin ay nasa Mindanao, which is right and good. But dapat may mag-takeover ng grupo para yung rehabilitation dun sa mga nasunugan. So let’s admit to ourselves that we will have, what’s the right number? 12 to 15 storms a year. We have volcanoes that are active. Then earthquakes or linugs are organic, if I can use that word, to our area in the world. So we really have to do better in not only the response and relief, but in the rehabilitation.
(0:01:20) I’d like to let you know where we are today. So all sides were saying na sana hindi maipit yung Senado. So, early this morning or late last night, I sent a letter to our legitimate Secretary of the Senate. Legitimate because if you follow the rules, hindi siya pwedeng tanggalin kung walang 13 at hindi pwedeng palitan kung wala rin 13. So, I’ll make that clear. Senate President Pro Temp, Senate President, Secretary of the Senate, OSAA, kailangan niyan 13 ang botong ilagay, 13 ang boto pag tinanggal. Hindi nila sinunod yan.
(0:02:02) So meaning, hindi legitimate si Atty. Bantug. So having said that, ayaw namin maipit yung mga empleyado. So I sent him a letter to talk with Attorney Bantug and nag-offer kami kung gusto ni Senator Win, pareho na lang kami pipirma kahit walang designation. So I think the letter was delivered mga 8am, a little bit past 8.
(0:03:32) Ang sagot nila nung 12 o’clock is that hindi na siya secretary at mag-turnover na lang. So I really want to avoid sa dami ng problema ng ating bansa that we have to write landbank, maipit yung sweldo ng mga empleyado and everything and I’ll never bend the law.
(0:02:48) Nor will I bend the constitution but I will bend backward for our employees para hindi sila maipit sa gulo for as long as it doesn’t bend the law. So kung internal rules or regulation that is not attached to law or it is not morally wrong that’s why I thought of… my staff thought of the idea na pag pareho nakapirma, para eventually, pag nagkaroon ng desisyon, walang legal infirmity. And it will also prevent yung mag-file-an yung dalawang kampo ng usurpation. Di ba?
(0:03:28) Kasi, of course, as far as I’m concerned, nag-usurp ng authority si Senator Win because he’s not really the acting president pababa. Pero marami ngang problema ang ating bansa. Why don’t we focus on that?
(0:03:42) So, apparently, because ayaw nila pumayag, dalawa Senado natin ngayon. You have the Senate of the Philippines and you have the Senate of Malacanang.
(0:03:51) So yung Senate of Malacanang had a hearing kanina and you have two Blue Ribbons Committee. Yung isa ay Comité de absuelto na ang kanyang main work is paano i-absuelto yung mga high officials ng ating bansa at yung isa naman na seeking the truth. So am I saying lahat ng sabihin ng labing walong ex-Marines ay completely true? No.
(0:04:15) What I’m saying is nga, give them a chance. I heard they have other evidence, including videos. I heard that if they come out and there’s full support na nararamdaman, may iba pang mga witnesses na may mga dokumento, may mga ebidensya na lalabas din. So as a nation, we have to decide whether the Senate will be under the thumb of Malacanang. And now that it is very clear to us that the biggest ever corruption scandal is the flood control scandal, if it’s acceptable to us that we witnessed this morning the biggest cover-up committee hearing of our generation. So ganoon lang kasimple yun.
(0:05:02) So in the same manner na nag-propose kami na parehong pipirma, I have not talked to Senator Marcoleta so hindi ko alam kung papayag siyang dalawa silang chairman or whatever but we have to find a solution that yung mga witnesses ay makakapunta ng malaya na protektado ng batas at independent yung Senate.
(0:05:25) Having said that, mahaba panahon, as I said kanina, let’s focus on Mindanao and on the relief and rehabilitation. Especially kung may mga lives that are at stake now because dun sa mga buildings. I don’t think all of us fully know the extent so far. Nakikita lang natin yung mga videos.
(0:05:48) So hanggang dun lang muna, we will continue with our meetings. We will focus muna on Mindanao. I am not sure when the next hearing ng Blue Ribbon led by the subcommittee by Senator Marcoleta is… I’m expecting to know soon. But definitely knowing what’s happening in Mindanao will have an impact on our decision. Kasi priority yun.
REPORTER:
(0:06:21) Sir, yung comment nyo sa resign call sa inyo and sabi po ng Malacanang kanina open si BBM na magpatawag na special session ng congress lalo na po nabanggit niyo rin yung nangyari sa Mindanao kanina and paano po yun kung magkakaroon ng special?
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:06:40) Unahin ko yung special session. So I had two communications with them sa Malacanang. And both cases, sinabi nila sa akin, hindi pa handa yung mga bills na gusto nilang ipapasa para dun sa UPLIFT.
(0:06:56) So biglang nung nagpalit ang majority, biglang kailangan ng special session dahil may bills na. Actually, kung may official silang bills, dapat na-file na yun para na-refer na sa committee. So sabi nila, inaayos pa nila. But having said that, kung bigla nilang naayos from the time I had discussions with them, may LEDAC, pinostpone nila the day before. Tinawagan ako ng secretary na head. And then sabi niya, Sir, pwede ba ituloy bukas? Sabi ko, kayo nagpostpone. Ready ako. Tapos hindi rin naman nila tinuloy. Yung sinasabing magtrabaho tayo, nagtatrabaho kami. Ready kami magtrabaho. Sila nag-walk out.
(0:07:39) Kaya nagkaroon din kami ng parliamentary tool na ginamit. Sinasabi ni Sen. Lacson pa ulit-ulit, and I feel bad for the generals and I apologize on behalf of the whole Senate, both the majority and minority. But nakita niyo naman, after nila cinonvene illegally ang session, ano bang ginawa nila? Nag-adjourn sila Sine Die.
(0:08:04) Ang calendar natin pwede pa hanggang Friday. Hindi naman nila tinuloy yung session ng Thursday, Friday. Sa sabi nilang mga gusto nilang ipasa. So ang problema natin sa kabila ay double standard. Iba ang sinasabi, iba ang ginagawa. So doon naman sa nananawagan na mag-resign, as I said, pag-usapan na lang natin in a few days after yung focus tayo sa Mindanao, but especially yung mga former presidents, yung mga nagkampi-kampi na mga Marcos na rin.
(0:08:32) Papasalamat ako sa inyo sa call nyo na mag-resign ako bilang Senate President kasi ibig sabihin, nire-recognize niyo pa rin ako as Senate President. Kasi kung hindi nyo na ako nire-recognize as Senate President, ba’t kayo nananawagan na mag-resign ako as Senate President? Di ba?
REPORTER:
Inaudible.
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:08:51) Any special session that will redound to the good of the Filipino people is welcome. The special session is in the Constitution. Yung ginawa namin nung bago matapos yung bago mag Sine Die, is precisely because aagawin nila yung committees.
(0:09:13) At kailangan matuloy yung hearing tungkol sa Blue Ribbon. Having said that, Mindanao is now. Di ba? They need the attention now. So if there’s needed legislation, good. We will meet right away. If not, then tulong-tulong tayo. But aside from that, let’s remember that the committees can continue to work. Nung pinauwi ni Senator Win nung Thursday, yung mga empleyado, may Senate hearing pa si Senator Pia.
(0:09:46) So hindi totoo na hindi nagtatrabaho. Wala tayong dapat conflict kung may kailangan yung ating bansa. Whether it’s legislation, whether it’s a meeting na LEDAC, dapat tanggalin ang politika pagdating na ng, you know, I say politika, but it’s an issue of graft and corruption. But what I meant is that it’s a political issue vis-a-vis a more urgent… They’re both important, but what’s more urgent? You can postpone a hearing. You cannot postpone a rescue mission. You cannot postpone yung pagkahatid ng mga relief. And then, yun nga, hindi natin nararamdaman pa ng husto.
(0:10:23) Pero the economic crisis is here. And every month until the end of the year, it will get much worse before it gets better. Because nga, tuloy-tuloy ang problema sa Middle East. So maraming tinatamaan diyan. Supply chain, presyo ng dollar sa peso, presyo ng diesel at ng gasolina, kakulangan ng fertilizer, taas ng presyo ng fertilizer, desisyon ng Vietnam at saka ng decision muna ng India kung bibigyan tayo ng magbebenta ng fertilizer, decision ng India at saka ng Vietnam kung magbebenta ng bigas o hindi, decision ng Indonesia whether mag-e-export sila ng coal o hindi.
(0:11:07) All of these are, kumbaga sa relo are moving parts na walang makakahula o makakapredict. So in that sense, kailangang magtulong-tulong talaga yung ating bansa. Kaya naman nandun pa rin on the plate yung graft and corruption kasi kahit anong plano natin sa economic crisis, kung ninanakaw pa rin yung pera, then mahirapan pa rin tayo lahat.
REPORTER:
(0:11:31) Sino po ang tatayong presiding officer sa impeachment trial? At may update po ba kayo sa…
(0:11:35) As soon as they have 13, walang problema, sila na. Okay, so I have to assert because may pinaglalaban tayo. Pinaglalaban ko hindi yung si Alan Cayetano ang Senate President. Ang pinaglalaban natin, ang Senado hindi pwedeng rubber stamp ng Malacanang. Hindi pwede pwede na hindi independent yung Senate. Hindi pwedeng may hearing kakatulad kanina, yung bibig na bumubukas ay Senador pero yung lumalabas na salita galing sa Malacanang.
REPORTER:
(0:12:03) Ano pong rules sa pagpili ng presiding officer sa impeachment trials?
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:12:07) They illegally amended the rules. They illegally had a session. Diba? So, in due time, there’ll have to be something that will decide. Diba? But in the same manner na ina-assert ni Senator Win na his the acting Senate President, kahit na walang legal basis whatsoever, I have to assert, not for myself, but for the truth and for the Constitution. But it’s still one month. At hindi kami nakikipag-agawan sa silya doon. So for example, yung Senate Secretary, dapat siya yung ngayon nag-aayos para dyan sa pre-trial. But nagte-takeover sila, Atty. Bantug. So we’re doing it very patiently. Because nga, we don’t want the whole Senate to be affected.
REPORTER:
(0:13:00) Paano po yun? Kanina si House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil, nagpasa siya ng manifestation ng House Prosecution Team kay Secretary Bantug, pero hindi niyo po siya kinikilalang Sec. Gen. Pero ang House Prosecution Team, si Sec. Gen Bantug daw ay kinikilalang Sec. Gen.
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:13:12) That’s going to be a problem for at least a few days, maybe a few weeks because we don’t expect naman the Supreme Court to rule right away. But what’s the best proof that Malacanang is in this?
(0:13:30) First, yung pananakot nila sa mga miyembro namin na lumipat, yung offer na wala ng kaso pag lumipat. Second, as soon as nila ginawa, naglabas sila na ang House at ang Malacanang ay dun pumapabor. Pwede naman mag-neutral ang Malacanang. Pwede naman sabihin ng Malacanang, settle it among yourself. Ganoon din sa House prosecution. Hindi naman nila gusto ng fair na impeachment.
(0:13:56) Gusto nila yung may pinipili na silang grupo. That’s why sabi ko sa inyo, if I’m wrong, then I’m wrong, then blame me. Eh kung tama ako na from 24 gagawin 22, eventually 18 ang senador. Tapos sasabihin nila 12 convicted na.
(0:14:14) Will that be a fair impeachment process? What will happen to the country if that happens? Then ang kasunod naman is conas. So give me a few days. Pag-usapan natin yan but let’s focus lang dun sa nangyayari. But just to answer your question, it will be up in the air. That will be a legal question and we are in the right side.
REPORTER:
(0:14:33) Sir, may we be clarified? Yung arrangement na inaalok niyo po kay Senator Win na dalawa kayong pipirma, ano po ang response ni Senator Win?
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:14:42) Sulat around 12 o’clock na sinasabi kay Atty…Sa ating Senate Secretary Jose Luis Montales that you are no longer Secretary and that Atty. Bantug and then that…basically, sinasabi na sila na. Yun din ang sinabi sa OSAA, but hindi first-hand knowledge. Sabi, chain of command. But wala nga sila sa chain of command. Kahit anong tingin mo sa rules, hindi nangyari yun. So yung pagwawala nila at pag-walk out nila kasi hindi pwedeng amendahan daw yung rule ng ganun-ganun, binaboy nila yung rules on June 3. So it’s going to be a lingering question.
REPORTER:
(0:15:35) How do you treat that? Hindi pumayag si Senwin sa arrangement na dalawa kayong piperma sa documents. And paano po yung swelgo nung credit employees?
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:15:37) It’s just like the civil rights movement sa US. From the civil war until pinasa yung mga civil rights laws, etc. Yung may batas ka, alam mo yung tama.
(0:15:54) Pero yung inaapi pa rin, yung mga minority, yun yung de facto. Di ba? So alam naman natin lahat kung ano tama at sinong tama. Pero ang kapangyarihan kasi nasa kanila eh. Sa kanila ang pulis, nasa kanila ang NBI, nasa kanila ang Malacanang. Kaya sabi ko, lahat ng kapangyarihan nasa kanila. Pero katotohanan na sa amin. So hindi ko pwedeng bitawan yun. Kailangan lumaban tayo doon.
(0:16:17) Kasi kung hindi, after this, all you have to do is to get one senator plus Malacanang. Hindi na 13 ang kailangan mong boto, one plus one lang. One plus Malacanang.
REPORTER:
(0:16:28) Sir, so you will still sign?
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:16:31) That is a practical question na hindi mangyayari because nga, from the bottom, paakyat dun sa office, never naman nila sinurrender yung SP office, hindi ko naman tine-threaten yung mga empleyado, but sila…
(0:16:51) Inaano nila yung mga empleyado. Yung ginawa ni Sen. Erwin tapos nag-sorry, bad cop, good cop yun, sadya yun, ishock mo na yung mga empleyado, na kakasuhan ka, tawagin mo kung ano-ano, tapos si Sen. Win naman yung mabait. So kahit na nag-sorry siya, natanim na yun sa puso ng mga empleyado. Kaya nga sa akin, sa mga empleyado, it’s a matter of conscience.
REPORTER:
Inaudible.
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:17:16) No, I’m not giving it up. I’m just saying, malamang hindi dumating sa opisina ko yung pipirman. But I’m not giving it up. Kailangan ko i-assert yun.
REPORTER:
(0:17:28) Sir sorry, ano po ba yung extent ng arrangement na pino-propose po ninyo, hanggang doon lang …
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:17:33) No, it was a first step lang kasi sinabi nila open sila. Eh hindi naman pala sila open. Di ba? Kasi sabi nila, ayaw nila ng gulo. Di ba? Sabi nila, eventually, kailangan magsama yung dalawang grupo, one senate tayo. Di ba? But mukha ngang utos ng Malacanang, hindi, kayo lang. Kasi nga, alam nila na even if we go to the Supreme Court ASAP, it will take time. So in the meantime, they’re buying time until they either get one more member or whatever.
REPORTER:
(0:18:01) How will you assert kung hindi… inaudible.
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:18:04) In any way I can. And it’s just like yung example na binigay ko sa iyo, whether it’s apartheid, whether it’s civil rights, doon tayo sa tama.
REPORTER:
(0:18:14) Sir, nabanggit niyo po kasi kanina yung Supreme Court. So are you referring to the one filed by the school teacher or meron po kayong…
SP ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:18:20) It’s always an option for everyone. It’s an option for the other side, for us, for other. The employees can also file. So let’s see. Kasi nauna na si Senator Win, nag-meeting na yesterday ata. Sa mga taga OSAA, yung kanilang in-appoint na secretary at OSAA, bagamat illegal, umikot na in every… As I told you, as a practical matter, ang matagal na naging Senate President si Senator Drilon. Tapos si Senator Sotto, matagal din, more than five years. Si Senator Koko, Senator Migz, Senator Chiz, magkakasama sila ngayon.
(0:19:04) Ako naman, isang empleyado, wala pa akong na-appoint. So as a practical matter din, sila ang mga ka-close. So syempre, sila ang napakinggan. But I have faith in the Senate staff that they should listen to all sides. But I don’t want to disturb, hindi civil war ang gusto namin. Ang gusto namin, manaig sa Senate kung ano tama, tama, kung ano mali, mali.
