Flavier gives up health panel to Loi

Although Sen. Juan Flavier remains loyal to the ruling party, he acknowledged yesterday the new opposition majority in the Senate and gave up his chairmanship of the chamber’s health committee in recognition of the "reality."

Flavier described as "legitimate" the reorganization that the opposition instituted on June 3 after Sen. John Osmeña abandoned the administration and went over to the opposition.

Flavier, a senator of the Lakas-NUCD party since 1995, was the first to abandon the administration senators’ argument that the June 3 reorganization was illegal and invalid.

Even after Sen. Ramon Revilla returns to the country after recuperating from spinal surgery in California, the administration would still have only 11 senators plus Senate President Franklin Drilon.

However, the Senate president only votes in cases of ties and the administration would still not have enough votes to carry the Arroyo administration’s legislative agenda.

In recognition of that reality, Flavier gave up his chairmanship of the Senate health committee to Sen. Luisa Ejercito, wife of jailed former President Joseph Estrada whom the opposition bloc named to the post.

"Senator Estrada had the decency to call me to say that she had been assigned to the committee on health. I said okay and I just asked her to make me a member so I can help her," Flavier said.

Flavier was among the top senators to be elected in the 1995 and 2001 elections but will not be eligible to run for re-election in the 2004 senatorial elections.

"The name of the game is delaying... It’s only a matter of time," Flavier told reporters, adding that the administration bloc in the Senate would also be forced to recognize the new majority if it fails to entice at least one senator to defect to the administration.

"Sungkitan muna (It’s hooking time)," he said. "Kung may masungkit kami, kami ulit ang majority. Eh kung sila ang makasungkit sa amin (If we can hook someone, we would again be the majority. But what if they are the ones to hook one of ours)?"

Flavier said he also expects other administration senators, especially those who were elected last year, to recognize the new majority since their terms would not expire until 2007, in the middle of the next presidential term.

But he reiterated that he would not defect to the opposition and also predicted that the new majority, led by Sen. Edgardo Angara, would have a hard time persuading Revilla to defect, contrary to persistent speculations.

He explained that Revilla can no longer run for re-election but his son, former Cavite Gov. Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr., plans to run for senator under the Lakas-NUCD ticket and would not unnecessarily alienate the leaders of the ruling party.

On the other hand, analysts said, several opposition senators are up for re-election in 2004 and would benefit from whatever modus vivendi they could forge with the administration. They are Senators Rodolfo Biazon, Robert Jaworski, Tessie Aquino-Oreta and Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

The administration could also forge "partnerships" with opposition senators who are no longer eligible to run in 2004, they added.