SEN. Panfilo Lacson on Thursday clapped back at Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano over what he described as the waste of approximately P700 million during Cayetano’s 28-day stint as Senate president.
In a post on X, Lacson responded to Cayetano’s remarks during a Facebook Live broadcast in which Cayetano said the Senate’s estimated daily operating expenses of P25 million would have been incurred regardless of who was Senate president.
“It is true that whoever served as SP (Senate president) would have incurred similar expenses. But the issue is output — working in plenary instead of boycotting sessions, passing laws instead of livestreaming on Facebook,” Lacson said.
“Taxpayers’ money was wasted because there was zero output during Cayetano’s watch,” he added.
Earlier Thursday, Lacson said at least P700 million in public funds was spent during Cayetano’s leadership that was marked by inactivity and disruptions in the Senate.
He cited several incidents, including the shots fired inside the Senate complex two days after Cayetano assumed the post, the escape of Sen. Ronald dela Rosa while under the Senate’s “protective custody,” a boycott of plenary sessions by senators allied with Cayetano, an alleged failed destabilization attempt and what Lacson described as “bogus” committee hearings.
Lacson said he based the P700-million estimate on figures previously cited by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, now Senate president, during deliberations on the proposed 2026 General Appropriations Act.
“As per the estimate made by the erstwhile Finance committee chairman, now SP Gatchalian, under the 2026 GAA, the Senate spends approximately P25 million a day — salaries, allowances, MOOE (maintenance and other operating expenses), etc. Multiply that by 28 days of inaction and inactivity, it’s P700 million,” Lacson said.
The Senate leadership changed hands on June 3 after Sen. Francis Escudero moved to the then-11-member minority bloc to form a quorum and elect Gatchalian as acting Senate president. Gatchalian was formally elected Senate president during a special session on June 17.
In the Facebook Live broadcast on Thursday, Cayetano rejected accusations that his bloc had been inactive during his time as Senate head.
“What they say is that we didn’t work; there’s no truth to it. It’s just a lie. We never stopped working. The question is, what are we working on? That’s nation-building,” he said.
While acknowledging that both Senate factions share the goal of nation-building, Cayetano maintained that their approaches differ.
“Don’t take it away from us. Our group wants to build a nation. We have good faith. We have a vision of a nation you want to build,” he said.
Even as Lacson and Cayetano traded barbs, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed hope the Senate will now “become more orderly” under Gatchalian’s leadership and “finally proceed with the normal conduct of governance.”
The president issued the statement a day after Gatchalian was elected Senate president.
“Well, that is exactly what we have been all hoping for — that things become more orderly, that the Senate runs smoothly. Everyone knows what happened,” Marcos said during an interview with members of the Philippine media who covered his trip to Kazan, Russia, on Thursday.
“I will support whoever the Senate chooses, as long as the process that they undertook in making a choice is proper, is legal, is constitutional, then that’s fine with me,” Marcos said.
He said delays in Senate sessions halted deliberations on bills and stalled important government appointments.
“Hopefully, with Senator Sherwin becoming Senate president, we can return to the normal operations of the Senate and that they can take care of the business of government, the business of legislation, and all these necessary legislations that we listed to show that [these] are priority — some of them are from before, some of them are new in response to the oil crisis in the Middle East,” he said.
The president also expressed his readiness to work with the Senate to fast-track the passage of priority bills.
On Monday, Marcos signed Proclamation Order 1318 calling the Congress to a special session. This was after Sen. Joel Villanueva joined pro-Gatchalian senators.
The order aims at discussing priority bills set by the Marcos administration for the Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council, composed of agency heads under the Office of the President and the Legislative, composed of members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
“The challenges confronting our people demand urgent action. Families affected by the recent earthquake in Mindanao require immediate assistance. Students need continued support to pursue their education. Our senior citizens deserve better health care. Our children must have better nutrition and vulnerable sectors need stronger protection,” Marcos said in the order.
The measures lined up for priority consideration include the proposed National Center for Geriatric Health Act, amendments to the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education Act, the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations Act, amendments to the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, the Last Mile and Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas Schools Act, amendments to the Masustansyang Pagkain Para sa Batang Pilipino Act, the Anti-Political Dynasty Law and the Presidential Merit Scholarship Program.
