Several senators asserted that they had made independent individual decisions to remove Sen. Leila de Lima from the chairmanship of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, contrary to her claim that President Duterte was behind her ouster.
“[I] can only speak for myself. President Duterte did not influence me at all nor did he even try to. My decision was my very own decision,” Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III told the Philippine Daily Inquirer in a text message.
Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III also vouched for the independent vote, saying the majority of senators who prevailed were only after the good of the country.
A total of 16 senators voted to remove De Lima, while three of her Liberal Party mates voted no to the proposal, along with Sen. Risa Hontiveros of Akbayan, who also ran under the LP in the May elections. The minority bloc led by Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto did not participate in the vote.
“Untrue. If it were true, Koko (Pimentel) and I will be the first to be informed by the President. He has nothing to do with the Senate’s action,” said Sotto.
“Independence is not just confined to not being supportive of the President. It could also be antagonistic and adversarial to the President, and we do not want both,” he added.
Source: Inquirer
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