Incoming Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri will invite Senator-elect Robin Padilla to a “one-on-one meeting” later this month regarding the committees given to Padilla to lead.

Padilla will head the Senate committee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes, as well as the public information panel.

“Bilang kanilang Senate President designate and hopefully elected Senate President, kakausapin ko talaga si Robin, one-on-one.. and I’ll ask him, kaya mo ba ito? Do you have the legal team that can help you and assist you,” Zubiri told ABS-CBN in a phone interview on Friday.

Zubiri’s decision to meet with Padilla was in reaction to the concerns raised by some of his colleagues regarding the actor’s capability to effectively chair the constitutional amendments panel, which would involve highly-sensitive discussions about the 1987 Constitution and various codes.

Since 1986 covering the 8th Congress until the year 2022 covering 18th Congress, experienced lawyers who became senators have chaired the Senate constitutional amendments panel.

They are:

Richard Gordon – 8th Congress, 13th Congress
Jose “Joey” Lina, Jr – 9th Congress
Miriam Defensor-Santiago – 10th, 15th, 16th Congress
Raul Roco – 11th Congress
Edgardo Angara – 12th Congress
Francis Pangilinan – 17th Congress, 18th Congress
Francis Escidero – 14th Congress
Frankln Drilon – 17th Congress

A senator who spoke on condition of anonymity said a group of them have already raised their concerns to Zubiri, particularly on the requirements that have to be met for one to chair such a panel.

The senator said they were told by Zubiri that Padilla was “very insistent” on getting the committee on constitutional amendments.

“Note that the committee proposes amendments not on ordinary laws but on the Constitution and Codes (Revised Penal Code; Penal Code; Civil Code; Corporate Code, etc), which are not simple laws but are very complicated laws,” the senator said.

“For 11 congresses, spanning over 36 years, the committee was always headed by lawyers of note. Now, it will be headed by an actor,” the senator added.

Zubiri said there is nothing in their rules that said the constitutional amendments committee or even the powerful Blue Ribbon panel must be chaired by a lawyer.

He added senators have handled committees that covered fields that were not their expertise, citing JV Ejercito as an example when the latter headed the Senate committee on urban planning and housing.

Zubiri said he first offered the committee of constitutional amendments to more senior members of the chamber but there was no taker.

“I asked my colleagues in the super majority if there’s anyone who wants that committee, please step up, and then we can discuss. Ang problema po… wala namang may gusto ng committee na iyan. Siya (Padilla) lang ang humihingi,” Zubiri said.

“Ngayon, kung meron po tayong kasamahan sa super majority sa committee na 'yan, please step up, please tell me, and then we will discuss it, and we will ask the super majority to decide kung sino ang karapat-dapat na umupo sa committee na iyan bilang chairperson,” he added.

Zubiri said he will call for the super majority caucus on the last week of June to discuss the committee chairmanship issue for the last time.

In that caucus, he said, each committee chairmanship will be put to a vote, and whatever the result will be formalized when the Senate session under the 19th Congress opens in July.

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