The Senate was unable to convene on Monday, June 1, after majority senators and presiding officers did not show up for the 5 p.m. session, leaving minority lawmakers unable to proceed with legislative business.
The plenary was scheduled to open at 5 p.m., but Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano and other members of the majority bloc were absent when the session was called. Minority senators attended and waited for more than an hour, but the chamber could not move forward without a presiding officer.
By 6:21 p.m., Sen. Kiko Pangilinan was the only senator left on the floor before members of the minority briefly returned to the plenary, taking a photo and allowing invited performers to lead the national anthem.
The breakdown in session came just moments after Sen. Jinggoy Estrada surrendered to authorities over a plunder case, further intensifying political tension inside the chamber.
Cayetano later said on social media that the majority’s absence was intended to assert Senate independence, though he did not specify what the chamber was asserting independence from.
The minority bloc, which referred to itself as the “Solid Bloc 11,” rejected the explanation and described the move as a dereliction of duty.
“The Solid Bloc 11 minority senators were present today for the 5 p.m. resumption of session, ready to work, ready to vote on pending bills and ready to keep the Senate running, but the majority led by SP Cayetano chose not to show up,” the group said.
Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri said it was the first time in his 14 years in the Senate that no presiding officer appeared for a scheduled session.
The minority warned that key measures were left pending, including the Magna Carta of Barangay Health Workers, the Anti-Hospital Detention Bill, Commission on Appointments confirmations, and citizenship bills for athletes Bennie Boatwright III and Matthew James Ramos.
The incident comes amid a fragile balance of power in the chamber, with the majority effectively reduced to 11 members following Estrada’s arrest and the continued absence of Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who has not returned to the Senate while facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant.
The numbers have left the majority’s control vulnerable, especially in the absence of a formally designated majority leader.
The latest standoff follows a previous walkout by minority senators, which forced adjournment of a session after objections to a proposal allowing remote participation in plenary votes.
