AGAP Party-list Rep. Nicanor Briones has stepped forward as the lawmaker seen in a viral video allegedly watching online cockfighting during the House session on July 28—just before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s State of the Nation Address.
Briones admitted to being the congressman in question but firmly denied engaging in e-sabong. According to him, he had only opened a message from his nephew inviting him to be a sponsor in an upcoming derby.
The lawmaker’s explanation comes amid growing backlash over the incident, which was caught on camera during the voting for the next House Speaker at the First Regular Session of the 20th Congress. E-sabong has been banned in the Philippines since 2022, following concerns over addiction and criminal activities linked to the digital sport.
Earlier in the day, Manila Rep. Rolando Valeriano, chair of the House Committee on Public Order and Safety, urged the congressman caught in the act to publicly apologize.
