MANILA, Philippines – Maaaring umupo si Senador Loren Legarda bilang kauna-unahang babaeng Senate president sa loob ng dalawa hanggang tatlong buwan bago matapos ang 20th Congress.
Ito ay kung maitutuloy ang naging plano ng mga senador kaugay nito.
Kung matutuloy, hahawakan ni Legarda ang Senate leadership matapos ang approval ng 2027 budget o bago matapos ang kanyang termino sa 2028, ayon kay Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III na bahagi ng naging diskusyon ng mga miyembro ng majority bloc nitong Miyerkules, Pebrero 4.
Nagsimula lamang ito sa biro ng term-sharing sa pagitan nina Sotto at Legarda.
“Then what we thought—just among ourselves—was that since they want to have the first woman Senate President, we might as well go ahead and do it,” pahayag ni Sotto sa panayam sa radyo nitong Huwebes, Pebrero 5.
“Zubiri said, even if it’s just the last two or three months of your term. I said, sure, why not?” dagdag ni Sotto.
“So it’s not exactly term-sharing. We plan to elect her as the first woman Senate president after the 2027 budget—in other words, in 2028, before her term ends. That’s the plan,” dagdag pa nito.
Kung term-sharing aniya ay uupo ang dalawang senador bilang Senate president ng tig-isang taon o isang taon at kalahati.
“The correct term is that we plan to make her Senate president toward the end of her term, during the 20th Congress,” ayon kay Sotto.
“Because there are some who want to install her, especially members of the minority. As they said, it was sort of a tongue-in-cheek remark by Zubiri,” dagdag ng Senate president.
Ang planong ilagay si Legarda bilang Senate president maging ang ideya ng term-sharing ay lumitaw kasunod ng umano’y bigong pagtatangka na patalsikin si Sotto bilang Senate president. RNT/JGC
