Malacañang said President Marcos is prepared to work with any Senate leader as long as the chamber’s actions are in the best interest of the Filipino people.

Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said this after Senator Rodante Marcoleta’s statement that Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano’s leadership was supposedly the only Senate takeover done without Malacañang’s blessing.

In a Palace press briefing on Monday, May 25, Castro stressed that the President has no issue with whoever leads the Senate.

“Sa Pangulo po, kung sinuman po ang leader po diyan, basta po ang gagawing trabaho ay para sa bayan at sa taumbayan, hindi po mag-aatubili ang Pangulo na makipag-ugnayan sa kanila (For the President, whoever the leader there may be, as long as the work is for the country and the Filipino people, the President will not hesitate to work with them),” she said.

However, Castro also rejected claims that Malacañang plays a role in changes in Senate leadership.

“Ang lahat po ng nangyayari sa Senado ay kanila po iyang pagdedesisyon, so wala pong kinalaman ang Pangulo sa kanilang mga pag-change ng leadership (Everything happening in the Senate is their own decision, so the President has nothing to do with their leadership changes),” she said.

Asked whether Marcos still had confidence in Cayetano’s leadership, Castro said she had yet to ask the President about the matter.

“Hindi ko pa po natanong ang Pangulo (I have not yet asked the President),” she said.

The Palace also acknowledged uncertainty over whether the administration’s priority measures could still be passed before June amid ongoing tensions in the Senate.

Asked whether Malacañang remained confident that the 21 priority bills under the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) would be approved on time, Castro said the President himself remained focused on measures that benefit the public.

“Sa Pangulo po ay wala po tayong issue. Wala po tayong issue dahil kung anong nais ng Pangulo para sa taumbayan iyan po ang nais niyang mangyari (As far as the President is concerned, there is no issue because whatever the President wants is for the benefit of the people),” she said.

“Pero hindi po natin masasagot kung hanggang saan ang kakayahan ng Senado sa ngayon (But we cannot answer to what extent the Senate is capable at this point),” she added.

When asked if the Senate was the institution facing issues, Castro replied: “Sila naman po iyong mayroong issue sa ngayon (They are the ones with issues right now).”

“Hindi po sa Pangulo ang may problema or may issue (So the President is not the one with the problem or issue),” she added.