Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, on Saturday, May 23, showed off his geeky side as he tried to explain the ongoing tension and controversies in the Senate to younger audiences by using names of Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG) expansion packs

In his Facebook livestream, Cayetano drew from the titles of recent Pokémon TCG releases—specifically “Mega Dream", “Perfect Order", “Ascended Heroes", and “Chaos Rising".

He recounted a recent conversation with one of his nephews, who asked him late at night, “What’s happening sa Senate?”

The Senate chief said he struggled to answer the question in a way that a child could understand. He noted that he could not simply explain complex political issues such as the International Criminal Court (ICC), protective custody, and internal disputes in a lengthy discussion.

“So, having said that, I figured out a way,” Cayetano said.

“If I can do it all over again and my pamangkin says, ‘What’s happening?’ I’ll start with Mega Dream,” he added.

Cayetano said the “Mega Dream” concept represents how people are encouraged to “think big” and pursue aspirations, which he said were ultimately rooted in God’s purpose.

“But part of our dream is to have Perfect Order,” he said, adding that humanity has long struggled to maintain harmony because of corruption, violence, greed, and other societal problems.

He then linked the idea of “Ascended Heroes” to people striving to do good, while cautioning against viewing politics through a simplistic “hero versus villain” lens.

“So ang problema ngayon sa algorithm natin, sa ating political thinking, parang rumble ng fraternity members na e kung patayan na o gulpihan na, I don't care about who's right and wrong. Dun lang ako sa kakampi ko (The problem with our current algorithm—and our political mindset—is that it has become like a fraternity brawl. Once the fighting and the violence start, I no longer care about who is right or wrong. I just stand by my side),” he said.

Cayetano said “Chaos Rising” best captures the current political climate.

He argued that disorder can come not only from people who want to destroy institutions, but also from those resisting reforms and change.

“Chaos is not only brought by bad people who want to destroy something good. It's also brought by bad people who want the status quo not to change,” he said.

The Senate President stressed that the country was facing broader challenges beyond politics, including inflation, rising fuel prices, exchange rate issues, food insecurity, fertilizer shortages, and the effects of El Niño.

“So from our mega dream to the perfect order, to the ascended heroes, to the chaos rising, life is like that,” he said.

“But unlike Pokémon, which is a game and it's for collectors, you're dealing with real lives here and not imagination,” he added.

Pokemon card collecting is big all over the world, and the Philippines is no exception.

You don’t even have to know how to play the game in order to enjoy it, as there is an entire niche of "pulling" rarities and valuable cards from expansion packs, which you could the trade up for even more valuable cards.