Press Release
June 23, 2007

LACSON: FLAILING SUPPORT FOR
NEW MAJORITY A MINOR SETBACK

Says there is still time for a change of heart

At least eight senators have decided to stick it out with each other - even if only to form the minority - amid the floundering support of some senators-elect belonging to the opposition.

Senator Panfilo Lacson bared this yesterday after the supposed secret balloting for the opposition's choice of nominee for the Senate presidency failed to push through Friday with the absence of at least three senators in the meeting.

"I will not hide my disappointment but I believe this only shows our strong adherence to the democratic processes in choosing a leader and I am still hoping that political affiliations and personal considerations will be set aside when the time comes for us to vote a Senate president," Senator Lacson said.

Senator Lacson said he would like to consider the event as a minor setback in the opposition's bid to be the majority bloc in the Senate. "There's still hope. After all, the finest steel passes through the hottest furnace and our group will prove to be one," he said.

He said the senators who attended the caucus gave their consent to be bound by a gentleman's agreement in their nominee for the senate presidency. The selection process would have been done through secret balloting.

"Nevertheless, the group has decided to stand its ground in the face of being the minority bloc in the Senate. If there's anything good that came out of that meeting, it is the solidarity that we forged, " Senator Lacson said.

The other senators in the meeting were Jamby Madrigal, Benigno Aquino, Rodolfo Biazon, Loren Legarda and Mar Roxas. Senator Antonio Trillanes, who is detained in Fort Bonifacio, participated in the meeting via telephone.

Those who agreed to be present but failed to attend the meeting were Alan Peter Cayetano and Francis Escudero, who both won under the banner of the Genuine Opposition, and Senator Jinggoy Estrada.

The group was supposed to `elect' a common nominee for the Senate presidency with Villar and the elder Pimentel as candidates. Under the plan, the group will vote as one for the chosen nominee.

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