Senate refuses to receive Aplasca suspension order – ombudsman

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has refused to receive the suspension order against Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca and the subpoena for the CCTV footage related to the discharge of firearms in the chamber, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said yesterday.

“We hit a snag. The Senate refused to accept our process server. Senate President Alan Cayetano even said that the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) should also be charged, so it means they already know that there is a suspension but they don’t want to receive it,” Remulla said in his radio show “Executive Session” over dzRH.

For him, however, these are considered served even though the Senate refused to accept them, saying there has already been prior notice.

Remulla has placed Aplasca under preventive suspension for six months without pay for discharging his firearm that triggered a shooting incident in the Senate premises on May 13.

He castigated Aplasca’s “attitude” in firing warning shots at law enforcement agents when essentially his role is to act as the Senate’s “security guard” and to secure the chamber and make sure the rules are followed.

“For you to fire a warning shot means you think you are above the law. Nobody is above the law, even if you work in the Senate,” he said.

Remulla said he would also subpoena the Senate’s CCTV footage of the incident, saying he hopes these would not be hidden.

The ombudsman has launched an investigation into the gunfire incident in the Senate, saying that those who will be found liable will face charges of obstruction of justice, aiding and abetting a fugitive from justice, failure to maintain public order and safety, gross neglect of duty, among others.

Meanwhile, in an official statement yesterday, Aplasca said that his office turned over the CCTV footage of the shooting incident to the Philippine National Police (PNP) Criminal Investigation and Detection Group on Thursday.

Aplasca also denied rumors of missing footage, maintaining that the second-floor cameras were “fully operational” during the May 13 shooting incident.

This contradicted his previous remarks during interviews that no CCTV cameras captured personnel of the Office of the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms (OSSAA) and Marines.

The official statement signed by Aplasca claimed that the receipt of the footage by the PNP “categorically disprove[s] allegations that no CCTV footage existed or was made available to authorities.”

OSSAA went on to advise the media to “exercise prudence, responsibility and fairness in sharing and reporting information,” stating that inaccurate reports “unnecessarily undermine the integrity of the ongoing investigative process.”

The gunfire incident transpired as Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who is facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity charges, was under the Senate’s protective custody.

Just hours after the incident, it was reported that Dela Rosa fled the Senate premises.

Initial investigation revealed that there were 27 shots fired from the Senate side and only five from the NBI side. — Neil Jayson Servallos