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Police Brigadier General Alan Manibog in October 2025 and acting Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca on May 14, 2026 (PNP ARMM; Philstar.com / Ian Laqui)
The incident occurred while the Senate was under lockdown after Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa claimed his arrest was imminent. Gunshots later rang out, most of them from Senate security. No casualties were reported, but Dela Rosa was able to leave the Senate before dawn amid the chaos.
Matibag questions warning shot
In a “Facts First” interview Friday evening, May 15, NBI Director Melvin Matibag also questioned the use of a warning shot, saying the standard cited by Senate security did not apply in the situation.
“[Aplasca] used to be director for operations of the PNP. He said, you are only entitled to warning shots if you are outnumbered and the force you’re facing is overwhelming,” Matibag said in Filipino.
“Second, firing a warning shot does not apply to him because he is not law enforcement. He is security personnel, as Sergeant-at-Arms,” the NBI chief added.
What Aplasca’s team could have done was communicate with the NBI instead of acting on assumptions that the Senate was about to be stormed.
“What he did was act all based on assumptions,” Matibag said. “He felt they would be assaulted, there was drilling.”
Possible charges
Police Brigadier General Randulf Tuaño, the PNP spokesperson, said anyone who fires outside protocol may face complaints for indiscriminate firing or alarm and scandal.
Manibog, however, spoke only on PNP rules and said he could not determine whether the same circumstances applied in the Senate incident. He said the threshold for firing a weapon is narrow.
“The use of firearms can be made only when there is an imminent threat upon oneself, or in self-defense, or in defense of a stranger,” Manibog said.
Asked whether the presence of a long firearm would be enough, Manibog said the danger must be clear.
“If there’s an imminent threat, kung klaro na sa atin na may delikado sa buhay mo, puwede kang mamatay, puwede kang masaktan, o puwedeng masaktan ang kasama mo, then we can use our firearms,” he said.
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Credit belongs to: www.philstar.com
