Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero said on Wednesday, September 25, there is no reason to discipline Senators Alan Peter Cayetano and Juan Miguel Zubiri following their brief but heated exchange during one of the Senate sessions.
A video taken soon after the Senate’s regular session ended on Tuesday, September 25, showed Cayetano and Zubiri arguing about a resolution that tried to keep voters in 10 barangays that the Supreme Court ordered to be moved from Makati City to Taguig City from losing their right to vote.
In a chance interview with Palace reporters, Escudero attributed the incident to exhaustion and the intensity of discussions over key legislative measures.
“I don’t see any reason for such action. They’re only human, and sometimes emotions run high when it comes to their beliefs and advocacies,” Escudero said in Filipino in response to questions on whether the two senators needed to be disciplined.
“The issue was resolved after just a few minutes. They apologized to each other, and I even joined in. We’ve been working long hours recently to finalize bills, and the incident happened around 9 PM—so naturally, everyone was a bit tired,” he added.
Escudero emphasized that the senators’ advocacies can sometimes lead to emotional exchanges. However, he pointed out that this is a natural part of their work.
When asked if he had spoken to Cayetano and Zubiri after the heated exchange, Escudero said there was no need as the matter had already been settled.
The Senate President added that he also apologized to both senators, since they have been working long hours the previous weeks.
He added that the public should not focus solely on the initial heated moments of the exchange, as the senators quickly made amends.
“They were able to resolve their differences in just a few minutes. You only saw the first part of the footage, not the end. I think there’s a video until the end. We were able to reach an understanding,” Escudero said. (TCSP)
