SENATE President Franklin Drilon will likely retain his grip on the chamber if Senators Alan Peter Cayetano and Aquilino Pimentel III fail to settle who of them should represent PDP-Laban in the race for the Senate presidency.
Drilon, who emerged No. 1 in the May 9 elections, is serving his third term as Senate president.
Cayetano, the defeated running mate of newly-proclaimed President Rodrigo Duterte, and Pimentel are both staunch allies of the outgoing mayor of Davao City.
Both are eying the Senate presidency along with Drilon and Senate Deputy Minority Leader Vicente Sotto III.
Duterte has said he is leaving it up to Cayetano and Pimentel to contest the Senate presidency.
Pimentel, the president of PDP-Laban, says his edge over the other senators vying for the Senate presidency position is that he knows the personal agenda of Duterte, the party’s chairman.
He says he has knowledge of the personal pledges made by Duterte since they were together during the election campaign sorties. He says Sotto belongs to the well-organized Nationalist People’s Coalition while Drilon has six to eight senators under the Liberal Party.
Cayetano, the outgoing majority leader, says at least 15 senators have already committed to support him.
“If the election were held today there are more than 15 that have committed but the election is not today,” Cayetano said.
The Nacionalista Party senator says some of the senators have already signed a resolution backing him as Senate president, while the others have given their commitment pending permission from their respective parties.
When asked how many have signed the resolution supporting him, Cayetano said: “I don’t want it to be a game of numbers at this point. And as I said, others signed while others gave their commitment but they still need to ask permission.
“Until the final day that we get elected, nothing is 100 percent.”
Sotto showed reporters a photo of Senator-elect Manny Pacquiao holding Cayetano’s resolution with no signature from the other senators.
Drilon said he would yield his position to whoever had the vote of 13 senators including Cayetano.
“I have always said that whoever has 13 signatures electing Senator XYZ to lead the 17th Congress, I am willing to yield the Senate presidency,” Drilon said.
“As I have said, those who have 13 signatures, just present to me the resolution and there’s no problem.”