Manila: Senate President Vicente Sotto III said Thursday that no group has met the constitutional requirement to replace the Senate leadership, downplaying speculations of an impending shake-up in the upper chamber. 'You will always need the 13 signatures. Kahit na 14 o 15 lang ang senador na present, you still have to have 13. That's the rule, that's the law in the Constitution kung paano mag-e-elect ng Senate President (Even if only 14 or 15 senators are present, you still need 13. That's the rule, that's the law in the Constitution on how to elect a Senate President)," Sotto said in a radio interview.

According to Philippines News Agency, Sotto explained that the delayed resumption of session followed informal discussions among senators after the chamber approved a resolution honoring Filipino athletes. He said members of the majority agreed to hold an open discussion at the Senators' Lounge at the request of Senator Loren Legarda, while he later met separately with several members of the minority bloc in his office to hear their concerns.

Sotto noted that the issues raised during these conversations were varied and did not amount to dissatisfaction with Senate leadership, preventing any unified move to replace the Senate President. 'Actually, ang sitwasyon ng problema, di ang Senate President (Actually, the situation or the problem is not the Senate President)," he said.

He mentioned that some senators felt affected by developments related to the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee's work, while others questioned why scrutiny appeared focused on senators instead of members of the House of Representatives, contributing to internal tensions but falling short of triggering a leadership challenge.

Sotto also addressed talk of a possible term-sharing arrangement, clarifying that there is no plan to divide the remaining term of the 20th Congress between two Senate presidents. 'So, it's not really term-sharing," he said, adding that there were discussions about electing Legarda as Senate president toward the end of the Congress, after the passage of the 2027 national budget.

Sotto said he remains confident of the chamber's stability as sessions resume, noting that no senator approached him to formally demonstrate that the required number of signatures had been secured to initiate a leadership change.