MANILA: Senate President Franklin Drilon believes the Senate still deserves the respect of the public despite the controversies of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Programme (DAP) coming one after the other.
Speaking at the opening of plenary sessions for the second regular session of Congress on Monday, Drilon said the Senate and its members must exert all efforts to recover the trust of the public in the coming weeks and months.
The PDAF scam, which involved the alleged diversion of public funds meant for various programmes and projects to the pockets of certain individuals, has led to the arrest of three senators, all accused of plunder and other related crimes.
Drilon said it pains and saddens him to witness and bear the relentless attacks against the Senate as an institution by critics of PDAF and the DAP for the past 12 months.
“The intense public beatings, the avalanche of intrigues and the arrows of insults shot into our gates might have succeeded in reducing the worth and the weight of the Senate in the minds and lives of our people,” he said.
“I recognise that as public servants we must remain receptive to and tolerant of criticism. But should we as individuals and as a collegial body allow the Senate to continue to be casually scorned?”
Drilon said the Senate as an institution remains a constitutional body entitled to respect, even if some of its members may have been found to have erred through their individual acts.
“I believe that it is the incumbent duty of each one of us to defend this institution from groundless and reckless assaults against its very dignity and integrity,” he said.
“We owe it to this chamber to combat falsehoods concocted by cowardly minds who spread their lies through proxy voices and pens; to speak up for the Senate even when it may seem to be more politically convenient and safer for us to be silent, to just wait for the tempest to pass.”
Drilon asked his colleagues to set aside whatever political aspirations they may have for the 2016 elections.
“(We must) work hand-in-hand for the rebirth of the Senate,” he said.
Drilon said one way for the Senate to regain the trust of the people is to work harder in passing legislation and instituting reforms in the government.
“(We have to show) to the people that we indeed deserve their trust by working hard and instituting reforms with public accountability as the primary goal and transparency,” he said.
THE PHILIPPINE STAR
