Only 8 senators vote for resolution vs Marcos burial

WITH EIGHT senators voting affirmative as against six voting negative and six others abstaining, the Senate on Monday failed to adopt a resolution expressing opposition to the burial of the dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

A statement by the Senate itself noted the chamber’s failure to get the votes against the planned hero’s burial, on which the Supreme Court (SC) gave the go-ahead on Nov. 8.

Senate President Aquilino L. Pimentel III, Senate President Pro-Tempore Franklin M. Drilon and Senators Paolo Benigno A. Aquino IV, Leila M. de Lima, Francis N. Pangilinan, Grace Poe and Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva voted for the adoption of Senate Resolution No. 86 filed by Senator Ana Theresia Hontiveros-Baraquel.

Except for Mr. Pimentel and Ms. Poe, the senators who voted for the resolution are affiliated with the opposition Liberal Party, also the party in opposition to Mr. Marcos before it was rendered moribund after his imposition of martial law. Another notable opposition party at the time was the PDP-Laban whose founding leaders include Marcos-era detainee Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr., the Senate president’s father.

Senate Majority Leader Vicente C. Sotto III and Senators Gregorio B. Honasan II, Richard J. Gordon, Panfilo M. Lacson, Sr., Emmanuel “Manny” D. Pacquiao, and Cynthia A. Villar voted against the resolution.

Senate Minority Leader Ralph G. Recto and Senators Juan Edgardo M. Angara, Maria Lourdes S. Binay, Francis G. Escudero, Sherwin T. Gatchalian, and Juan Miguel F. Zubiri abstained.

“My plea is for the rule of law. My plea is that we send the right message and the right message is for the people who are not in favor to speak up here and say: ‘We are against it.’ For those who are in favor, whatever they want to do. But, to vote as a Senate sends a very bad signal that the Supreme Court seems to be a Marcos court,” Mr. Gordon said, explaining his vote.

As also quoted in the Senate statement, Mr. Recto for his part said: “The Supreme Court had already ruled that it is legal to bury former President Marcos at the Libingan ng Bayani and said that there is no grave abuse of discretion. I respect the decision of the Supreme Court. But having said that, I believe that former President Marcos is not a hero. Perhaps he can be buried there because he was a former president and a former soldier.”

“We have debated the issue for the last 30 years. We have been divided between the Aquinos and the Marcoses. Tama na (Enough). We have to put it at rest so we can concentrate on the Filipinos,” Mr. Escudero said.

Mr. Drilon and Ms. de Lima said they voted yes because the Senate has the right to express its sentiment as a political institution.

“On the dismissed petition, the SC said that this was a political decision. The Senate as a political body has every right to express its sentiment, especially on a political decision. It is not a disrespect for the SC. We place ourselves on the record. Let history judge us after this day,” Mr. Drilon said.