MANILA, Philippines — Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Wednesday night said authorities still have no knowledge as to who was behind the shooting in the Senate but vows to get to the bottom of the incident.
Tensions erupted in the Senate on Wednesday afternoon after heavily armed men barged into the building following Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca’s announcement that “we will arrest somebody.”
While no specific names were mentioned, Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa was the only one in the building with a standing arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
It was initially attempted to be served by the National Bureau of Investigation last Monday but the senator outran authorities to get to the plenary and vote for the change in Senate leadership.
Shortly after, gunshots were heard and senators and Senate employees quickly rushed to safer grounds.
In an interview together with Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, Remulla laid down the chronology of events and clarified the reason for the PNP’s presence at the Senate.
According to Remulla, armed men tried to enter through the second floor at around 7:46 pm but were stopped by the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms. The OSAA fired a warning shot but the armed men retreated at the back and started firing indiscriminately into the air.
“We are in the process of determining who is behind this. We have instructed the GSIS and the Senate staff to secure all CCTVs,” he said.
Senators were all secured and no injuries or casualties were recorded, Remulla said.
