Chiz Escudero Is Ousted as Senate President. How Did We Get Here?

On September 8, Sotto said he secured the signatures of at least 15 senators—the bare majority needed to oust a sitting Senate chief. Likewise, he confirmed that Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson will be the new Senate President Pro Tempore (the second-highest-ranking Senate officer who presides in the absence of the Senate President) while Senator Juan Miguel Zubrini will be the Majority Leader. 

So how did we get here? And it's only a Monday!

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The tipping point might have been the issue on flood-control projects into which Escudero's name was dragged uncomfortably close.

In July, Inquirer.net reported that P142.7 billion was quietly added to the 2025 national budget during its final bicam stage. Much of that was routed to flood-control projects, many of which reportedly lacked the pertinent information or justification. 

One detailed breakdown by fact-checking organization Vera Files highlighted Escudero’s alleged role in pushing multi-billion-peso insertions for infrastructure projects across provinces, including P2.93 billion and P1.16 billion for flood control in Bulacan and Sorsogon, respectively: “In the ‘small’ bicam, Escudero arrogated unto himself the function of the finance chair to introduce the insertions in the General Appropriations Act."

Escudero brushed off the insertion allegations as a "demolition job," pointing out that the alleged figures kept changing from report to report—from billions in Sorsogon, then to Bulacan, until suddenly ballooning to over P150 billion. For him, the shifting numbers showed the accusations were unreliable.

He also insisted there were no "blank items" that could be filled in with questionable projects later on in the 2025 budget report he signed.

“Grabe naman kasi 'yung insinuation ng mga naninira. ‘Pag nag-amyenda ka ng budget, insert na agad, iligal na agad, at bawal na agad, may kita na agad. Hindi naman siguro tama ‘yon. Mali naman yata ‘yon. So, anong gusto niyong sabihin sa amin? Wala kaming karapatang baguhin ‘yung sina-submit na panukalang budget ni BBM?” Escudero said.

Then, Malacañang dropped the now-infamous audit in August, which revealed that only 15 firms received about P100 billion worth of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood control projects since 2022. Allegations of “ghost” projects triggered Senate hearings for an independent probe.

But it wasn’t until one of the top 15 contractors under scrutiny—Centerways Construction and Development—was linked directly to Escudero that the scandal picked up speed in the Senate. On September 2, the company’s president, Lawrence Lubiano, said that he donated P30 million to Escudero’s 2022 senatorial campaign, but clarified that the money came from his personal funds. According to Rappler, Lubiano’s firm had secured more than 50 flood-control projects in Sorsogon—Escudero’s hometown—where two of his brothers currently hold office as mayor and city councilor.

Escudero confirmed the donation but maintained he never intervened in Centerways’ DPWH dealings. 

“Matagal ko nang kaibigan at kakilala siya at tumutulong talaga sa amin, mula’t mula pa noong hindi pa issue ito, at tubong Sorsogon talaga siya…pero ang nakuha niya ay P5.4 billion ‘di umano. Wala pang isang porsyento ng kabuuang pondo na sinasabi ng Pangulo sa flood control. Ang tanong ko, bakit pinagtuunan ng pansin ‘yon? ‘Yong 1% pa talaga. Hindi ‘yong 99%. Bakit hindi pinagtuunan ng pansin ‘yong mga mambabatas marahil o opisyal ng gobyerno na kontraktor?” Escudero said in a press briefing. 

According to Rappler, the 15 senators who supported the leadership change are, apart from Sotto: Bam Aquino, Pia Cayetano, JV Ejercito, Win Gatchalian, Risa Hontiveros, Lacson, Lito Lapid, Loren Legarda, Kiko Pangilinan, Raffy Tulfo, Erwin Tulfo, Mark Villar, Camille Villar, and Miguel Zubiri. 

This makes Sotto the longest-serving senator in Philippine history. He was first elected to the Senate in 1992, serving two straight terms until 2004. After a brief break, he returned in 2010, secured reelection in 2016, and rose to Senate President from 2018 to 2022 during the 17th and 18th Congress. In 2022, he gave up his seat for a vice presidential run but lost.

For Escudero’s part, he thanked colleagues from both the 19th and 20th Congress, adding that he harbors “no grudges, no ill feelings.” 

“During my tenure, Mr. President, the Senate did not shy away from confronting the difficult questions facing our nation. We passed a record number of laws that helped uplift the lives of our countrymen. We conducted hearings that unearthed corruption on a scale rarely seen before. And in doing so, we remind the public that accountability is not a mere empty rhetoric but a duty that we must uphold,” Escudero said.  

“I am proud of what the Senate has accomplished together, and I trust that the spirit of transparency and courage that have been displayed by this Chamber will be sustained. Sana po mapapatuloy natin ito. Let justice and the rule of law be done and followed ‘though the heavens may fall.”

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