Senator Cayetano questions handling, timing of alleged Senate security threat

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano expressed concern over reports that only a number of senators were informed by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) about an alleged security threat against the Senate.

Cayetano also raised questions about the timing of the disclosure of the alleged security threat.

The issue stemmed from statements by Senate President Pro Tempore Sherwin Gatchalian that certain senators had received a briefing from the NBI regarding a supposed threat to the institution, leading to the implementation of heightened security measures.

Cayetano said that if the threat were legitimate, information about it should have been shared with the entire Senate and coordinated through the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms, which is tasked with ensuring the chamber’s security.

“If the threat is credible, then every Senator, every member of the Secretariat, and every individual who works within these walls deserves to be informed and protected,” Cayetano said in a statement issued June 9.

“Security is not the concern of one bloc. It is the concern of the entire Senate,” he added.

He questioned why the reported intelligence was allegedly communicated to only a select group of senators rather than the entire chamber.

“The moment a ‘security threat’ is briefed to some and withheld from others, it ceases to be a security matter and becomes a political instrument,” he said.

Cayetano also scrutinized the origin of the intelligence report. “It did not come from the Senate’s own Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms, the office constitutionally charged with protecting this institution. It came from the NBI,” he said.

He maintained that the reported threat should be independently verified and called for transparency regarding how the information was gathered and disseminated.

Cayetano further questioned the timing of the disclosure, pointing out that it surfaced while the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee continues its probe into alleged irregularities involving flood control projects.

“The timing demands honesty. This ‘threat’ surfaces precisely as the testimonies made in the latest Blue Ribbon Committee hearing begin to press for answers from the names it has raised,” he said.

The Senate President was referring to the June 4 Blue Ribbon Committee hearing, where 18 former Marines alleged that suitcases containing cash had been distributed to several politicians.

Despite the reported threat, Cayetano said Senate operations should continue uninterrupted.

“Let there be no misunderstanding: the work of this Senate must continue. The surest test of whether a threat is genuine and not a pretext is simple – a real threat is used to protect the Senate’s work, never to suspend it,” he said.

-Paraluman News