At least four senators from the minority bloc took the time to check on their colleagues during the shooting incident at the Senate building on May 13, according to Senator Erwin Tulfo.
Tulfo made this remark in response to Senator Pia Cayetano’s accusations that none of her colleagues in the minority reached out to them during the chaos.
According to Tulfo, both majority and minority senators utilize a WhatsApp group chat to communicate with one another.
He mentioned that among the senators who sent messages through the chat group following the Senate shooting incident were Senators Francis Pangilinan, Bam Aquino, Sherwin Gatchalian, and himself.
Senator Risa Hontiveros on Wednesday delivered a privilege speech condemning the shooting incident, saying it severely damaged the institution’s moral authority and dignity in the eyes of the public.
Hontiveros expressed frustrations over the chamber’s apparent return to normalcy following last week’s chaos after the gunfire.
For her part, Senator Pia Cayetano gave an emotional statement countering claims that the chamber has overlooked the seriousness of last week’s shooting incident, revealing fear for her life during the shooting.
“So much happened. I am not blaming anyone. But after everything… not a single one of you checked on us… It is very painful for me… if you were not here, do not question what happened to those who were here,” she said.
In an interview with Unang Balita, Tulfo noted that Cayetano’s emotional outburst was apparently born out of fear. But he lamented that Cayetano claimed no one ever dared ask about her situation. We have a chat group in WhatsApp. All senators from both the majority and the minority join that chat group,” Tulfo said in Filipino.
Tulfo added that some people sent in their messages, among them Pangilinan, Aquino, Gatchalian, and himself.
Tulfo recalled sending in his own message about 10 p.m.
He added that Senator Camille Villar responded, saying “Thank you, we’re all okay.”
“I do not know why Senator Pia (Cayetano) did not read the messages,” Tulfo said.
Both Tulfo and Hontiveros previously expressed dissatisfaction with the Senate leadership’s inadequate response to recent events, particularly the shooting incident and the subsequent disappearance of Senator Ronald Dela Rosa who is facing an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.
