Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima--newly-minted Liberal Party (LP) of the Philippines chairperson--is poised to steer the ship of the mutli-time former ruling political faction.

And she plans to do so by going against the grain of the country's current political environment.

"Una sa lahat, maraming salamat sa tiwala at karangalan (First of all, thank you very much for the trust and the honor). What matters now is how we understand the moment we are in," De Lima said in her speech Saturday during LP's National Executive Council Meeting.

The event coincided with the celebration of the party's 80th anniversary.

"The Liberal Party enters its 80th year in a political environment that rewards speed over thought, noise over coherence, and force over legitimacy," De Lima noted.

"In such an environment, parties are tempted to survive by becoming flexible in the wrong ways: by thinning if not forgetting their principles, outsourcing their identity, or mistaking visibility for strength. This council chose a different path," said the former senator.

"The decisions taken today point to a clear understanding: that durability in politics comes from structure, not spectacle; from organization, not improvisation; from principles, firm principles, that guide action even when they are inconvenient," she said.

Reflecting on LP's lenghty existence, De Lima said that being around for 80 year does not prove moral superiority.

Rather, she said, "It is proof that a political institution can outlast personalities if it learns when to adapt and when to hold its ground."

"The [LP] has endured because it has known the difference between the two," the House deputy minority leader underscored.

"For this party to matter in the years ahead," De Lima noted, "It must speak with coherence and act with coordination. Leadership must be exercised as stewardship. Debate must strengthen collective direction rather than fragment it. Public engagement must reflect internal clarity."

"As chairperson, this is the standard I will insist on," she reckoned.

De Lima told her fellow LP stalwarts that the work ahead will demand patience and seriousness. "It will demand that we resist shortcuts that weaken institutions, even when those shortcuts seem effective. And it will demand that we treat party-building as political work in itself, not as a secondary concern to elections."

"The posture this council has set is quiet, firm, and deliberate. It tells our members that the party remains a place where ideas are organized into action," she said.

"It tells our partners that cooperation with us comes with clarity. And it tells the country that there is still a political organization willing to do the slow work of democracy. That is how the [LP] enters its next chapter," added De Lima.