Drilon is Senate President

After a vote of 17-6, the ruling Liberal Party (LP) on Monday obtained the Senate leadership with Senator Franklin Drilon’s election as Senate President.

Drilon, who is the LP vice-chairman, defeated Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, who resigned recently as Senate President. Drilon obtained 17 votes against Enrile’s six, Gma news online reported.

Drilon acted as campaign manager to all newly-elected senators who ran under the Liberal Party  ticket during the May 2013 election. These new senators voted for Drilon: Senators Juan Edgardo Angara, Bam Aquino, Loren Legarda, Francis Escudero, Alan Peter Cayetano, Cynthia Villar, Aquilino Pimentel III, Antonio Trillanes IV, and Grace Poe. Senators Enrile, Pia Cayetano, Ralph Recto, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Teofisto Guingona III and Sergio Osmena III also voted for Drilon.

Senators Lito Lapid and Ramon Bong Revilla Jr., who are aligned with the Lakas-CMD associated with former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, supported Drilon.

Those who voted for Enrile includes Senators Gregorio Honasan, Jinggoy Estrada and Vicente Sotto III. Senators Drilon, Nancy Binay and JV Ejercito also voted for Enrile.

Drilon led the chamber from April to November 2000 during the term of President Joseph Estrada, and from July 2001 to July 2006 under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Before becoming a senator, Drilon also served as secretary of labor, secretary of justice and executive secretary of President Aquino’s mother, the late President Corazon Aquino.

As Senate President, he is now tasked to preside all of the chamber’s sessions, to sign documents on behalf of the whole Senate, and to determine whether to diminish or increase the number of the chamber’s personnel.

Drilon, as senate president, is also the ex-office chairman of the Commission on Appointments, which has the power to approve or disapprove appointments made by the President, Gma news online said.

Source: Gma news online