A growing number of senators closed ranks Monday against a video presentation by Sen. Imee Marcos, with Sen. Risa Hontiveros openly questioning whether the Philippine Senate had sunk to a new political low.
“Delivering a privilege speech is not the same as having the privilege to insert fake news into the official record as if it were evidence,” Hontiveros said, adding a pointed challenge to what she called the deteriorating state of political discourse. “May bago nanaman pong kuwento. Ibang storya nanaman po ang gusto ngayong linggo. Nakakahiya na. Araw-araw na lang bang ganito?” she asked her colleagues.
Marcos had presented a nine-minute video during a privilege speech on May 25, insinuating that members of the minority bloc were quietly backing moves to revise the Constitution. The video accused Marcos’ allies in the Senate of supposedly using the Charter change route to disqualify Vice President Sara Duterte from the 2028 race.
Hontiveros expressed solidarity with Sen. Migz Zubiri, who moved to have the video stricken from the Senate record. She reiterated her earlier statement questioning how far political conduct had fallen. “Uulitin ko lang po ang sinabi ko last week… ganito na ba kababa ang inaabot ng politika sa Pilipinas? Dahil hanggang dito sa floor ay magbabatuhan tayo ng putik?” she said. While senators are accustomed to debate and criticism, she said the content shown had crossed a clear line. “Sanay naman tayo sa pakikipag-debate, pagtanggap ng batikos at pagsagot sa mahihirap na tanong. Ang pinakita pong video ay fake news,” she added.
Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, former chairperson of the Senate Constitutional Amendments committee, also pushed back against the allegations. “The Committee on Constitutional Amendments never held hearings on Constitutional Change — that in itself is proof, Mr. President. That is ‘haka-haka’ (speculation), this conspiracy to commit or to amend the Constitution for whatever reason: self-serving, term extension, no-el, etc. These are lies,” he said.
Majority Senators Rodante Marcoleta and Robin Padilla opposed the motion to strike the video, with Marcoleta saying he did not hear anything from Marcos that “offended the sensibilities of our counterparts in the minority.”
Marcos eventually withdrew the video under the condition that no senators would block the 2028 national elections. Zubiri responded with assurance that the polls would proceed as scheduled.
Sen. JV Ejercito urged his colleagues to move past the episode. “Let us not be used as platform for misinformation. We must bring back the trust of the people,” he said.
