Chiz: Senate President change already done when Marcos learned about it

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. only learned about changes in the Senate leadership when a new top leader in the chamber was already installed, according to Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero.

Escudero, quoting his conversation with Marcos during the senators' dinner in Malacañang on Tuesday night, said the President only heard of the development when he came back in Manila from his events in Dumaguete City and Bacolod City.

"He never knew about it because he was in Dumaguete in Bacolod and by the time he landed, he found out that there was already a change and it was finished. That’s what he told me," Escudero told reporters.

Insinuations that Malacañang had a hand in the ouster of former Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri were raised after the latter highlighted in his resignation speech the independence of the Senate as an institution.

Zubiri said in his speech that he "failed to follow instructions from the powers that be," and that it is probably why he met his "demise."

While he did not give further details on what he mentioned in his speech, Zubiri said in an interview the day after he resigned as Senate president that his defense of Senator  Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa's inquiry had cost him his position.

"At least alam niya [Dela Rosa] na dinepensahan ko siya bilang isang chairman ng committee at dahil dyan, nagkaroon po ng sakripisyo, ako po ang sakripisyo d'yan, nawala po ako sa posisyon," Zubiri sid.

(At least he knows that I defended him as a chairman of the committee and because of that some sacrifice had to be made and I got booted out.)

Dela Rosa, chairperson of the Senate public order and dangerous drugs, is leading the Senate investigation into the alleged leaked Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency papers which linked Marcos and actress Maricel Soriano to illegal drugs.

On the other hand, Dela Rosa said he was informed by Escudero that the investigation into the supposed leaded PDEA documents was not a factor why Zubiri was ousted.

Citing his conversation with Escudero, Dela Rosa said he was told that if the "PDEA leaks" probe was indeed the reason for Zubiri's ouster, he would have also been removed as chairperson of the Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs.

Escudero and newly installed Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada both denied that Malacañang was involved in the changes in the Senate leadership.

Escudero himself admitted that he initiated the move to replace Zubiri as the head of the Senate. — BM, GMA Integrated News