FACT CHECK: No prior knowledge of Senate shooting, minority bloc says

Claim: Members of the Senate minority bloc, particularly senators Risa Hontiveros, Bam Aquino, Tito Sotto, and Ping Lacson, had prior knowledge of the shooting incident at the Senate on May 13, which was why they had already left the premises when gunshots were fired.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: Multiple social media posts bearing the claim circulated following a shooting incident at the Senate, which happened around 7:45 pm on Wednesday, May 13. According to Senate logs shared by GMA News, most members of the minority bloc left the Senate between 5 pm and 7 pm, with Lacson exiting around half an hour before gunshots were fired.

The social media posts questioned the minority senators’ absence from the Senate premises. Facebook page “Dare to Ask,” which has over 257,000 followers, shared this post: “Four senators got tips 30 minutes ago while we were talking, na umalis na dito kasi may mangyayari…Political disagreements, debates are normal. Pero yung parang trayduran na at willing ipahamak at ipagkanulo ang kapwa Pilipino sa mga banyaga is just a different level! Anong klaseng mga nilalang ito?” 

(Four senators got tips 30 minutes ago while we were talking, that they should leave because something is going to happen. Political disagreements, debates are normal. But to be willing to harm and to betray fellow Filipinos to foreigners is on a different level! What kind of person are they?)

The post has since accumulated over 5,490 reactions and 820 comments.

This claim was further amplified by Facebook user “Joy Alvarez,” whose post — which garnered over 110 reactions, 20 comments, and 210 shares — explicitly named four senators: “Si Tito Sotto, Risa Hontiveros, Bam Aquino, Lacson umuwi ng maaga before putukan. Ligtas ang may alam!”

(Tito Sotto, Risa Hontiveros, Bam Aquino, and Lacson went home early before the shooting. Those who had prior knowledge are safe!)

User “Daks_RobertoOfficial” reshared the post in the Facebook group “Philippines Mega Cities and Cultures,” which has over 33,500 members.

The facts: Minority senators debunked claims that they allegedly had prior knowledge of the incident, and explained why they were no longer inside the Senate complex when gunshots broke out.

In a post on May 14, Pangilinan directly debunked rumors that the minority bloc received prior warning.

“May mga kumakalat na sabi-sabi na na-warningan daw kaming nasa minority na magkakagulo. Hindi totoo ‘yun. Umalis ako nang maaga sa Senado dahil may meeting ako sa labas,” he said.

(Rumors are spreading that we in the minority were warned that trouble would break out. That is not true. I left the Senate early because I had a meeting outside.)

In an interview with DZBB, Senator Erwin Tulfo said that Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano earlier told senators about a planned all-member caucus, but later changed it into a majority-only meeting, Philstar.com reported. Tulfo added that he was already home when the gunshots broke out.

Meanwhile, Hontiveros explained that Senate employees and minority lawmakers left the Senate because session had already ended and they had other commitments to attend to. 

“Ito po ang katotohanan: tapos na ang session, kaya umuwi na ang mga empleyado. Ako, lumipad papuntang probinsya para sa scheduled na conference. Ang mga colleagues sa Minority, ang aming mga staff, pati ang marami sa aming mga katrabaho ay nag-uwian dahil tapos na ang trabaho,” the senator said.

(Here is the truth: the session had already concluded, so the employees went home. As for me, I flew to the province for a scheduled conference. My colleagues in the Minority, our staff, and many of our coworkers went home simply because their work was finished.)

She criticized attempts to link minority senators to the incident, saying the departure of Senate employees, “who are doing an honest day’s work,” should not be used for politicking, especially to shield “a man who simply doesn’t want to face the law.”

Senate shooting: Gunshots were fired on the evening of May 13 at the Senate, where Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa had been holed up since Monday and placed under the chamber’s protective custody, evading an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for alleged crimes against humanity related to the Duterte administration’s war on drugs. (READ: Bato dela Rosa’s escape: Timeline, analyses, opinions from experts)

Dela Rosa, who resurfaced after six months of hiding during a May 11 Senate leadership coup, previously claimed the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) was chasing him to serve the warrant. Palace Press Officer Claire Castro, however, said on May 14 that the NBI was not there to execute a warrant.

Castro explained that the incident began when Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca fired a warning shot at an NBI agent, prompting the agent to return fire.

NBI Chief Melvin Matibag said an investigation is underway amid speculation that the incident was “staged” to divert attention away from Dela Rosa, who escaped Senate premises early Thursday. – Reinnard Balonzo/Rappler.com 

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