MANILA, Philippines -- Senate Minority Leader Vicente Sotto II said the minority bloc would seek the Supreme Court's intervention if the majority group succeeded in changing the Senate rules to allow electronic voting.
The minority bloc walked out Tuesday night to express its disgust over the majority's move to rush the changing of rules without exhaustive deliberation on the matter.
"If we are not able to stop it (changing of Senate rules to allow virtual voting)," said Sotto in a text message on Wednesday when asked whether the minority intended to raise the issue before the high court.
"Rules should be followed not changed for personal reasons. Our rules said, 'a change of rules must undergo a day rule and the rules committee must report out.' Why was it that [Sen. Rodante] Marcoleta insists on what is wrong?" Sotto said in Filipino and English.
Sotto pointed out that the rules committee was "never" constituted after the leadership change on May 11 wherein he was replaced by Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano as Senate president.
"There is no [rules committee] chairman. [Senator Joel [Villanueva] was [in] acting capacity only. Why will they insist to change the rules when it is obviously just to favor [Senator] Bato [Dela Rosa] and whoever will be charged. That is not our fault," Sotto added.