By GMA News Published June 3, 2026 5:47am + Add GMA on Google Make this your preferred source to get more updates from this publisher on Google. The tense mood in the Senate session hall got a dose of humor from Senator Lito Lapid on Tuesday, who jested that there would certainly be order if he were to preside in session."Kapag ako pumukpok, walang magsasalita. Committee on Silence ako (If I bang the gavel, no one would talk. I'm the Committee on Silence)," Lapid quipped.Lapid is known as one of the quieter members of the Senate.The veteran senator, who is also a famous actor, was exchanging banter with fellow minority senators, Panfilo Lacson, Erwin Tulfo and JV Ejercito, as they await the arrival of the 11 members of the majority bloc.For the second straight day, the Senate failed to hold a session due to the absence of the majority senators.In a statement later in the day, the majority senators said they are withholding a quorum to “protect ongoing Senate investigations” and ensure that probes of alleged corruption and misuse of public funds can continue once there is no longer political interference.On Monday, they were also a no-show in plenary as some of them accompanied Senator Jinggoy Estrada to the Philippine National Police, following his arrest on plunder charges.“The recent arrest of Senator Jinggoy Estrada and the continuing absence of Senator Ronald 'Bato’ dela Rosa have created an unusual situation in which the balance of votes inside the Senate has shifted,” the majority bloc said in a statement on Monday.They added: “While these developments do not provide sufficient numbers to change the Senate leadership, they may allow changes in committee leadership through the votes of senators present during session.”With Estrada's detention and the absence of Dela Rosa, who is facing a warrant of arrest from the International Criminal Court, both the majority and the minority bloc have 11 members each.During last week's session, Lapid took the floor to clarify that he remains with the minority. He also urged his fellow senators to set aside their differences and work together. —LDF, GMA News