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‘I WATCHED WITH HORROR THAT THE SENATE HAS BECOME THIS’

President Marcos said he watched “with horror” the recent controversies surrounding the Senate, lamenting what he described as the institution's decline compared to when he served as a senator.

READ: https://mb.com.ph/2026/05/29/marcos-horrified-by-current-state-of-senate-opposes-proposed-online-voting

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Transcript
00:00Sir, magandang tanghali po. Sir, on local issues po, sir.
00:03Sir, after the gun-related incident in the Senate and then there's the walkout of the minority bloc
00:11and the alleged another Senate coup as the President and former member of the upper chamber,
00:20how concerning is this, sir?
00:21Very. I watched with horror that this is the Senate, that the Senate has become this.
00:34I look at my other fellow senators, madalas kaming nagtitinginan ni E.S. Ralph,
00:43ganyan ba tayo nung senador tayo? Meron ba tayong ganyan na ginagawa? Hindi tayo ganyan.
00:48Paano nangyari? Yung Senado, hindi nakagaya nung panahon natin.
00:56Dahil, nagpe-personalan na eh. Naging personal. Ang babaw na ng usapan.
01:06Dahil, ang kwento ko nga, yun na nga, kwento na meron mga senador na pagka meron kami pinakausapan sa trabaho,
01:15hindi kami nag-agree talaga. At saka tatayo, mag-interpolate, at saka yung interpolation talagang mabigat,
01:22at saka well-studded and no-holds-barred interpolation.
01:27Pero after pag-upo namin, magkakapi naman kami, kakain kami ng magkasabay, hindi personal.
01:32It's about work. It's not about personalities.
01:35Eh, nagbago eh. Tapos, narating pa tayo sa putukan. Tapos, fake pala yung putukan.
01:44Tapos, hindi ko maintindihan.
01:48Walang, walang, walang nangyayaring kagayanan nung panahon ko sa Senado.
01:55Of course, the only basis for comparison that I have is the time that I was in the Senate.
02:02And I never imagined that the Senate would descend into this kind of what's happening right now.
02:14And then, I was watching the comments of former SP, another colleague of ours, Senator Frank Rilon.
02:27Sabi niya, paano nangyayari dito? The Senate is now sheltering fugitives from justice.
02:35How did that happen?
02:37I don't understand how a Senate is supposed to function.
02:41If that is, those are the kind of things that the Senate is embroiled in.
02:47I hope they figure it out soon. I really do.
02:50Thank you, Mr. President. The next question.
02:52You have a follow-up question?
02:53Yes, sir. Just one quick follow-up.
02:55Because, sir, there are also concerns na, because of the series of cases filed to some of the Senators
03:01that are part of the majority block, including Senator Aimee,
03:07she said that, well, maybe the majority 13 is being targeted.
03:13Are they?
03:13Is being?
03:14Targeted.
03:15Look, almost a year ago,
03:18ang sinabi ko sa taong bayan,
03:19kailangan malaman ng buong taong bayan ang katotohanan.
03:24At noong kami ay pinag-aaralan ng ombudsman,
03:28ng Department of Justice,
03:29lahat ng mga aligasyon na dumating dahil sa flood control,
03:33maraming nagsasabi, bakit wala pang nangyayari, bakit wala pang nangyayari,
03:37bakit ang tagal ninyo, namimili lang yata kayo kung sino yung i-trosecute ninyo.
03:43Ngayon, nandito na, at dadahan-dahan lumalabas na ang katotohanan.
03:48At dahan-dahan na, at ang pinakamaganda,
03:51kung talagang may kaso, kung sila ba naman,
03:53ay walang ginawang mali,
03:55ay lalabas naman yan sa pagsusuri ng paghusga.
03:59At kaya naman, eto na, eto na yung mga,
04:03ang hinihingi sa amin ng tao.
04:05Alamin nyo, ilabas ninyo lahat ng katotohanan.
04:08Eto ang kaping ngayong ginagawa.
04:10Hindi pa tapos ito.
04:12Patuloy pa ang investigasyon.
04:13Patuloy pa ang mga pag-imbestiga at pag-aaral
04:16at sa intelligence and information gathering
04:20tungkol sa mga iba't ibang aligasyon kung kanikanino pa.
04:26Hindi ko alam kung paano napunta na sinasabi na yung majority ngayon
04:33ang tinatarget.
04:35Dahil kung tutusin ninyo, hindi silang majority noon.
04:41So, that does not apply.
04:43It was because of the allegations that were made
04:46and the investigations that were conducted upon learning of those allegations
04:51against kung sino man.
04:54And kung ano man ang naging alignment sa Senado,
04:59walang kinalaman yun.
05:01Eto pa rin ang mga tao na numabas ang mga pangalan.
05:04Kung titignan ninyo,
05:10kung saan pinagbabasihan lahat itong mga ito
05:15ay doon sa testimonya sa Blue Ribbon Committee.
05:20Doon naman lumabas lahat ito.
05:23So, binigay ng Blue Ribbon Committee sa Ombudsman at DOJ
05:27ang mga findings nila.
05:30Eto ang naging resulta ngayon.
05:32So, it has nothing to do with the alignment.
05:36E kung magbago yan,
05:36the alignment is different again tomorrow.
05:39Hindi, I'm not saying it will be.
05:40But if the alignments are different again in terms of the majority,
05:44e paano mo sasabihin pag nagbago na naman yan?
05:47So, hindi walang kinalaman yung majority,
05:51minority sa Senado.
05:53Eto ang dahil sa resulta ng mga investigasyon
05:58ng Blue Ribbon Committee
06:00at ang tiba-tiba ang ayan sa nang pamahala.
06:03Thank you, Mr. President.
06:04The next question from Alexis Romero, Philippine Star.
06:11Good afternoon, Mr. President.
06:13As a former senator,
06:15what are your thoughts on the proposal
06:17to amend the Senate rules to allow online voting?
06:24All right.
06:26As a former senator,
06:27I suppose I'm reasonably qualified.
06:30I disagree with that.
06:32I understand that we had to do it in COVID
06:34because there was a health risk.
06:38But I do not see any particularly good reason
06:43for us to allow it now.
06:45It seems to only be applicable to Senator Bato
06:49para makaboto si Senator Bato
06:52dahil nagtatago siya.
06:54Now,
06:56for someone who is actually a fugitive from justice,
07:00na hinahanap ng police,
07:02na hinahanap ng Interpol,
07:04at may arrest warrant galing sa ICC,
07:08palagay ko,
07:09hindi siya dapat magbumoto
07:12hanggat dumating siya doon sa Senado.
07:15Kung he's willing to take the risk
07:17like he did the last time,
07:19ibang usapan yun.
07:21Masat nandyan siya.
07:23So,
07:23it has been the long-standing tradition of the Senate
07:27is that if that you are not physically present
07:30on the floor
07:31when a vote is taken
07:32that you cannot, in fact, vote.
07:35Again,
07:36COVID
07:36gave
07:38was
07:39gave
07:40us
07:40a different outlook
07:42in terms
07:43because it was concerned about
07:44we were concerned about
07:46health and safety
07:47at that point.
07:48We do not have those concerns now
07:50about health and safety.
07:52Okay.
07:53Follow up lang,
07:53Mr. President.
07:54You touched on it slightly na,
07:56but I will ask it anyway.
07:57There are notions
07:58that the electronic voting
08:00will enable Senators
08:01facing charges
08:02to evade accountability
08:03or even arrest.
08:04Do you share the same concern?
08:07I never really thought about it
08:09in those terms.
08:09Ang para sa akin is that
08:11simple lang ang question.
08:13Dapat bang bumoto ang Senador
08:14kung hindi siya sumipot?
08:17Sa akin palagay,
08:19hindi dapat.
08:20Kung talagang importante siya
08:21makaboto,
08:22dumating ko sa Senado.
08:30Hann Ji Pwangor,ôi
08:30and sirek feels like being
08:32yad up for chiunECK,
08:37You
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