MANILA, Philippines – With coronavirus cases in the Philippines still rising, 15 senators are pushing to amend the rules of the Senate to allow teleconferencing in committee hearings and plenary sessions. 

Senate Resolution No. 373, filed on Monday, April 27, sought to amend Rule XI Section 22 and Rule XIV Section 41. The upper chamber will still have to convene physically when Congress resumes on May 4 to approve the resolution, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said in a DZRH interview.

Under the amendment, the Senate President, after consultation with the majority and minority leaders, may either postpone or convene plenary sessions through teleconferencing “with the consent of the House of Representatives.”

According to the proposed resolution, committee hearings and plenary sessions can only be done through teleconferencing if there’s an emergency or unforeseen circumstance that would prevent senators to convene physically.

If approved, the Senate secretary – a position now held by lawyer Myra Villarica – will determine the appropriate platform that the senators will use, subject to the Senate President’s approval.

The Senate secretary will ensure the security and reliability of the chosen platform, and provide safety measures to “protect the integrity” of the plenary sessions and committee hearings.

The Senate secretary will also be responsible for the archiving of the audio or video output, which will be part of Senate records.

The following senators signed the resolution:

• Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri
• Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto
• Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon
• Senator Sonny Angara
• Senator Nancy Binay
• Senator Pia Cayetano
• Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa
• Senator Sherwin Gatchalian
• Senator Lito Lapid
• Senator Imee Marcos
• Senator Manny Pacquiao
• Senator Grace Poe – may amend
• Senator Bong Revilla
• Senator Joel Villanueva
• Senator Cynthia Villar

Senators met on Monday afternoon for an online caucus via video-conferencing app Zoom and discussed the agenda on May 4.

“Majority are supportive of amending the rules to allow us to do business despite not being physically present. Details and everything including committee hearings, filing of bills, and resolution online will be discussed and hopefully finalized on May 4,” Villanueva said.

Asked whether detained Senator Leila de Lima will be allowed to join the virtual sessions, Sotto told Rappler: “We have no jurisdiction over her. It’s the courts and PNP (Philippine National Police).”

Congress will resume on May 4, after a break of more than a month. The date of the resumption falls within Metro Manila’s enhanced community quarantine period which began on March 15 and will end on May 15, barring another extension. 

Historically, the Senate has never conducted virtual sessions, even after Drilon and Senator Panfilo Lacson filed a resolution in 2019 seeking to allow De Lima to join plenary sessions from Camp Crame.

Even if President Rodrigo Duterte lifts the lockdown on May 15, Metro Manila’s enhanced community quarantine will only be downgraded to a general community quarantine, which essentially allows regular operations under strict health protocols. (EXPLAINER: What happens under general community quarantine?)

Zubiri, the main proponent of the proposed resolution, earlier explained that many senators have underlying conditions, while some are already senior citizens.

“The last thing we want to do is expose our members, staff, and secretariat personnel in the legislature and make it (coronavirus) spread like wildfire towards the communities where they live,” the majority leader said. 

The Philippines has so far recorded 7,777 confirmed coronavirus cases, including 511 deaths and 932 recoveries as of Monday. The number of infections worldwide surpassed 2.9 million while over 206,000 people have died across 193 countries and territories. – with a report from Agence France-Presse/Rappler.com