Sen. Enrile, Rep. Belmonte get top posts in 15th Congress

Senator Juan Ponce Enrile will reprise his role as the president of the Senate of the Philippines, after a majority of the senators on Monday voted for him.

Enrile was elected on the floor of the 15th Senate during the official opening of its session Monday morning. Senator Franklin Drilon, also a former Senate president, presided over the election of the new head of the chamber.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly, 227 against 29, for Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. as the House Speaker.

Liberal Party (LP) secretary general and Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya nominated Belmonte, who went up against Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman of Lakas-Kampi-CMD. All in all, 258 House members attended the opening of the session. (See: Rep. Belmonte elected as House Speaker)

At the Senate, Enrile went up against Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, who was nominated by Senator Joker Arroyo.

Arroyo admitted that he nominated Cayetano "out of necessity" and "out of need."

"We must maintain a healthy Senate ... a Senate not beholden to anyone," he said during the election.

Among the 20 senators present on Monday, Enrile received 17 of the votes while Cayetano received three votes from Enrile, Arroyo, and Senator Pia Cayetano.

Only Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago was absent.

Senate unity

Enrile said his "triumph" was not his alone. "It also signals the unity that is needed by our country today... a sign of the merging spirit in our land and our nation," he said.

He said his election effectively united contending parties in the chamber. "We have set aside the partisan political divide that separates us to arrive at the consensus to elect the head (of the Senate)," he said.

Senator Francis Pangilinan of the Liberal Party and Senator Manuel Villar of the Nacionalista Party, who were early contenders for the Senate presidency, backed out of the race when none of them could muster enough votes to bag the post.

http://www.gmanews.tv/story/196989/sen-enrile-rep-belmonte-get-top-posts-in-15th-congress 

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