The 24-member Senate in the 19th Congress will not only a be multi-tasking Senate but will also avoid being an echo chamber.
Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri stressed this after he was elected as Senate President following the opening of the first regular session of the 19th Congress on Monday, July 25.
The Senate then signaled its readiness to legislate important measures to help the economy recover from the effects of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, anemic economy, and political conflicts.
Senator Juan Edgardo Angara acted as the presiding officer during the opening of the session.
All 24 senators were present, signifying the return to normal proceedings from the previous virtual and hybrid sessions due to the pandemic.
Zubiri was elected Senate President by majority of the senators, with Senators Risa Hontiveros, Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, and siblings Alan Peter Cayetano and Pia Cayetano abstaining.
Senators Joel Villanueva, Loren Legarda, Jose ‘’Jinggoy’’ Estrada, Grace Poe, and Ronald ‘’Bato’’ dela Rosa paid tribute to the expertise in parliamentary rules of Zubiri and in his being ‘’the best of us all’’, a "congenial hard worker’’ and ‘’most charming gentleman".
Hontiveros nominated Pimentel as the Senate minority leader. Pimentel and Hontiveros compose the two-member Senate minority group.
Zubiri noted that he was in the minority group when Pimentel’s father, the late Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr,, was the Senate President.
The Cayetanos said they would prefer to be independents but committed to help the institution succeed.
Senator Loren Legarda was elected Senate president pro-tempore while Senator Joel Villanueva was elected as the majority leader.
Senator Robinhood Padilla, the topnotcher in the May 2022 senatorial race, did not vote for Villanueva, saying ‘’umiiwas ako sa pagboto (I am shying away from voting).’’ He did not elaborate.
Also elected was lawyer Renato Bantug Jr. as the Senate secretary.
The new senators formally took their oath as the Senate opened its session. They are re-electionist Senators Zubiri, Villanueva, Hontiveros, Sherwin Garchalian; comebacking Senators Legarda, Francis Escudero, Cayetano (Alan Peter), Joseph Victor ‘’JV’’ Ejercito, Jose ‘’Jinggoy’’ Estrada; and neophyte Senators Robinhood Padilla, Raffy Tulfo, and Mark Villar.
Right after the suspension of the session, the senators also participated in a photoshoot with their spouses.
After the morning session ended at 11:57 a.m., the senators proceeded to the House of Representatives for a joint session of Congress to listen to the first State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
In his acceptance speech, Zubiri thanked colleagues for the trust they bestowed upon him and vowed that the Senate under his leadership would remain independent.
‘’To the public, let me assure you that it is not only a multi-tasking Congress, but also a crowdsourcing one. We value your ideas because this upper chamber will never be an echo chamber,’’ he said.
‘’This Senate, under my leadership, will be one to solve problems more than it would find faults,’’ he said.
‘’To my dear colleagues in the majority, I remain with you in the trenches. But with hard work and dedication we will deliver for the people. We shall help them overcome,’’ he emphasized.
‘’There is a future to be won. Let us go to our battle stations and fight to upllft our people’s lives and make our nation even greater than before,’’ he added.
During interviews, Zubiri said the Senate would prioritize passing the 2023 national budget that would include funding for a stimulus package, assistance to distressed industries and sectors affected by the pandemic, and current political issues.