Attendance, survey reports raise questions on Senate performance; Dela Rosa leads absences

Two recent Senate reports reveal the performance and attendance of each senator, released on April 7 and 9.

A newly released Senate survey report last April 7 highlighted varying levels of participation among senators.

Multiple lawmakers have been identified as “poorly performing” based on voter perception.

The survey, conducted by WR Numero Research, asked respondents to name up to three senators whom they believe are not effectively fulfilling their duties as legislators.

A separate official Senate report showed that several senators maintained consistent or near-perfect participation.

Notably, Ronald dela Rosa emerged as a key figure in both reports, topping the list of “poorly performing” senators with 25% in the survey.

Dela Rosa also recorded the highest number of absences from July 28, 2025, to March 18, missing more than half of plenary days due to his arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for his involvement in the war on drugs.

He is currently facing an ethics complaint for his physical absences in the Senate.

The senator was followed by Jinggoy Estrada with 24%, while Robin Padilla and Risa Hontiveros both registered 15%, despite Hontiveros being present in all plenary sessions.

Along with Hontiveros, seven other senators were present in all sessions, namely Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Senators Jinggoy Estrada, Robin Padilla, Joel Villanueva, Sherwin Gatchalian, and Bong Go.

Sen. Bong Go received a 9% in the “poorly performing senator” survey along with Senator Chiz Escudero.