Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano has appealed to the minority bloc to stand united in safeguarding the independence and integrity of the Senate amid mounting external pressures and controversies.

Cayetano issued the call following the arrest order issued against Senator Jinggoy Estrada by the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division.

The Senate leader emphasized that preserving the upper chamber’s autonomy is crucial to maintaining its role as a separate, co-equal branch of the government.

“The Senate is a co-equal branch of government. It is not a prize to be claimed — by anyone,” Cayetano remarked.

He maintained that while internal rifts are normal, these disputes should be settled strictly within the halls of the Senate, free from outside manipulation. Furthermore, he insisted that a lawmaker’s legal situation and the chamber’s institutional freedom must never be treated as leverage in political dealings.

“I am speaking truth that each senator already knows — the independence of this institution, and the legal standing of any of its members, are not currencies. The day they become things to be traded, is the day that the Senate is diminished. And after the Senate, the Republic,” Cayetano warned.

He pointed out that the current situation goes far beyond a routine political disagreement, testing whether the institution can truly withstand outside influence.

Cayetano also brought up the relentless pressure and looming threats of arrest targeting members of the majority bloc, specifically naming Senators Francis “Chiz” Escudero, Rodante Marcoleta, and Joel Villanueva.

He further lamented the handling of the incidents on May 11 and May 13, noting a double standard where the Senate and its employees are being placed under investigation, while the actions of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the new Minority bloc—which triggered tensions in the chamber—are being ignored.

According to Cayetano, instead of prosecuting the actual masterminds behind the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood scam led by Henry Alcantara, the focus has shifted to targeting lawmakers.

He stressed the importance of ensuring that state investigations and legal cases are not weaponized to exert political leverage over senators. He warned that if fear and intimidation dictate the chamber’s actions, the Senate’s role as a pillar of democracy will be severely compromised.

“So I put one question to you, not as the majority but as the chamber: will you stand for the Senate’s independence?” Cayetano asked the minority bloc.

He challenged his colleagues to prioritize the integrity of the Senate over the narrow interests of any political faction or coalition.

To register a firm protest against outside meddling, Cayetano proposed a symbolic “deliberate act” where the chamber would collectively choose to go silent.

“I am asking you to join one deliberate act — to let the Senate go quiet, together and by choice, so the country is made to ask why a co-equal branch would fall silent rather than be made to serve,” he explained.

In closing, Cayetano reminded the lawmakers that the ultimate defense of the institution rests upon their choices.

“The door is open. What you do with it is yours to answer — to this institution, and to the people watching it,” he concluded.