Intramural

Our politics is an interminable feast. This week, on the menu to keep us all entertained, are the power plays in both chambers of Congress to determine leadership positions.

- ALEX MAGNO

This should occupy the news over the next few days—not that it will resolve outstanding policy issues but because it will settle the power struggle one way or the other. In this country, politics is sports.

Depending on the turn of events, the power struggle in both chambers could influence the decisive political alignments for the crucial 2028 presidential elections.

The shifting alliances are never about principle, of course. It is about who is able to cut the pie to the greatest satisfaction of members of the chamber.

I have it on good source that the leadership struggle in the Senate is over. Sitting Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero has sealed the deal, winning the support of over two-thirds of the chamber.

Chiz moved quietly but effectively in consolidating support. The clincher, according to my informant, was when he agreed to name incoming senator Rodante Marcoleta chair of the Blue Ribbon committee. The articulate freshman senator is the lynchpin of the pro-Duterte bloc.

Marcoleta, who distinguished himself through several terms at the House of Representatives, is a powerful political figure—not the least because he has the backing of an influential religious sect.

Returning senator Tito Sotto made some gestures indicating his interest in recapturing the Senate presidency. But he did not have the resources to barter and, it seems, the energy to play the high-stakes game. His only supporter appears to be returning senator Panfilo Lacson. Together, they formed what was called the "Macho Bloc" in the chamber during their heyday.