Tag: Francis Pangilinan

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Lacson Swats Away Panelo’s Prejudgment of Impeachment Trial Votes

Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson swatted away as “nonsensical” the prejudgment by ex-presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo on how he and other senators would vote should the impeachment case of Vice President Sara Duterte reach the Senate.

Lacson particularly took issue with Panelo’s claim that he, Senate President Vicente Sotto III, and Senators Risa Hontiveros and Francis Pangilinan would vote to convict the Vice President.

“Why is Panelo trying to sound smarter than us? No one can speak on my behalf. And I have said this before – we’ll always be guided by the evidence. We haven’t reached the trial stage, why is he preempting us and calling us ‘pusakal/feral’?” he said in a mix of English and Filipino in an interview on Storycon on One News. “Is he a soothsayer? What if I say he’s a pusakal/feral soothsayer?”

“He isn’t just a feral dog. He’s an idiot,” Lacson said of Panelo.

In Filipino: Lacson, Tinaboy si Panelo sa ‘Prejudgment’ Nito sa Boto sa Impeachment Trial

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Lacson Eyes Senators’ Dialogue with Chinese Embassy on WPS Row

Now that Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan has expressed willingness to sit down with Philippine leaders to ease the word war between Chinese diplomats and Philippine officials, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson is open to initiating a dialogue between the Senate and the Chinese Embassy.

Lacson, who described Ambassador Jing’s statement as a “pleasant surprise,” said Saturday afternoon he will propose to Senate President Vicente Sotto III that the Senate invite the Chinese diplomats to a meeting or a dialogue.

“I will suggest to the Senate President that the dialogue include at least members of the Senate majority. The minority can send their representatives to take part,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino, in an interview on DWIZ radio.

“To me, that’s a good opening we should consider and we should grab the opportunity to initiate such talks. We can meet at the Senate, or the embassy grounds, or a neutral area. It would be good to sit down and discuss what needs to be discussed. After all, we have diplomatic ties with China. We even have a One China Policy,” he added.

In Filipino: Lacson, Nais Magka-Dayalogo ang mga Senador at Chinese Embassy sa Isyu ng WPS

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Lacson: NIA Owes Public Answers on Waste of Funds in Balog-Balog Multipurpose Project

The National Irrigation Administration (NIA) owes taxpayers a clear explanation for the wastage of funds in the long-delayed Balog-Balog Multipurpose Project in Tarlac, which remains unfinished despite receiving P7.006 billion from 2015 to 2020 alone, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson said Thursday.

Lacson expressed this concern during the interpellation of the proposed 2026 budget of the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), recalling that he raised similar questions about the project in 2020.

“Hindi lang sa budget deliberation natin dapat pagusapan ito. I think we should really focus on the delayed projects and the obvious wastage of public funds, particularly sa Balog-Balog Multipurpose Project (We should take this up not just in the budget deliberations. I think we should focus on the delayed projects and obvious wastage of public funds, particularly in the Balog-Balog Multipurpose Project),” Lacson said.

In Filipino: Lacson: NIA, Dapat Magpaliwanag sa Nasasayang na Pondo sa Balog-Balog Multipurpose Project

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Lacson Pushes P250M Funding for Anti-Corruption Office in Judiciary

To strengthen the Judiciary’s fight against corruption, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson on Wednesday pushed for the inclusion of funds in the 2026 budget for the newly reorganized Judicial Integrity Office (JIO).

During his interpellation of the 2026 budget of the Judiciary, Lacson noted that operationalizing the JIO would help strengthen accountability among judges, officials and employees of the courts.

“I’m interested in this. (This is part of the) signs of the times (because) as the nomenclature suggests, JIO will be primarily tasked to promote integrity and to address issues of corruption within the Judiciary,” he said.

“While the consciousness is high in addressing corruption, maybe this is the proper time to assist the Supreme Court and the Judiciary to organize immediately the JIO,” he added.

In Filipino: Lacson, Itinulak ang P250M Pondo para sa Anti-Corruption Office sa Hudikatura

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