Risa's call for Senate reckoning over gunfire sets off Pia outburst

MANILA, Philippines — A call by Sen. Risa Hontiveros for the Senate to confront last week's gunfire incident prompted an outburst Wednesday, May 20, when Sen. Pia Cayetano took personal offense at her remarks and made Hontiveros return to the floor to clarify them.

In a privilege speech, Hontiveros told the chamber it could not carry on "parang walang nangyari" — as if nothing happened — nearly a week after gunshots erupted inside the Senate premises and triggered a lockdown. 

"Halos isang linggo na matapos ang habulan at barilan dito sa Senado. Sa loob-loob ko, hindi ako mapanatag na simula nung Lunes ang ipinakita natin ay para bang walang nangyari, na para bang hindi nabastos ang ating institusyon, ang ating mga empleyado, at ang mga Pilipino," Hontiveros said. 

(It has been almost a week since the chase and shooting here in the Senate. Deep down, I am not at peace that since Monday, what we have shown is as if nothing happened, as if our institution, our employees, and the Filipino people had not been disrespected."

She said the institution had suffered "a profound injury to its dignity, credibility, and moral authority" and warned against leaving the public to merely piece together events through "Facebook live press conferences and media interviews."

Amid the ongoing probe led by the Department of Justice, Hontiveros said she is hoping the Senate itself — as a body — acknowledge and confront what happened inside its halls, rather than treat the incident as a closed matter to be handled only by the outside investigators.

"Kapag may nagpaputok ng baril right here in the people's house, kapag naghasik ng takot sa mga empleyado, sa media, sa security personnel, at sa mga sibilyan, at umuwing nanginginig at hindi mapakali sa sariling bahay, lampas na ito sa issue ng pamumulitika," Hontiveros said. 

(When someone fires a gun right here in the people's house, when fear is sown among employees, the media, security personnel, and civilians, and they go home trembling and unable to rest in their own houses, this is beyond the issue of politics.)

She said the Senate could not act as though nothing had happened the week before. "Alam natin ang tama at mali. Alam natin kapag sumosobra na," she said. 

("We know what is right and wrong. We know when it has gone too far.")

The outburst. Cayetano took the floor minutes later and expressed frustration at the "parang walang nangyari" line and recounted her feeling of fear amid the lockdown.  

"Siguro para sa inyong mga wala dito, pero para sa amin na nandito, napakaraming nangyari," she said.

(Maybe for those of you who were not here, but for us who were, so much happened.)

She also faulted the minority bloc, or the old majority, for supposedly not reaching out during the incident. 

Hontiveros returned to the rostrum and clarified with Cayetano the context of her remarks. She said her "parang walang nangyari" line referred to how the Senate has carried on since Monday — not to what colleagues, staff, security personnel and reporters lived through during the shooting itself.

"I empathize with the experiences and the feelings expressed by the gentlewoman from Taguig and Pateros," Hontiveros said.

Prior to Hontiveros' speech, Sen. Erwin Tulfo, another member of the minority bloc, delivered the first speech calling for transparency behind the May 13 gunfire incident.

Tulfo pressed the Senate leadership for answers and said the public saw "confusion" and "an atmosphere closer to disorder than democratic governance" in one of the country's highest institutions.

Several senators from the majority and minority had queue'd up to deliver speeches or manifestations related to the May 13 incident. Due to time constraints, Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano said these could be tackled in a committee hearing instead.