MANILA, Philippines — The Ombudsman wants a list of media personnel present during the May 13 shooting incident at the Senate while Sen. Risa Hontiveros commended them for their bravery and professionalism during their coverage of the alleged standoff.
The Ombudsman is asking for the "logbook entries indicating the time of log-in and log-out of the media personnel, if any" on May 13 and 14.
Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla urged "friends from the media to submit their own affidavits" to narrate what took place during the shooting incident "together with the footages that they took."
Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca admitted that he was the first one who made the warning shots after seeing a National Bureau of Investigation agent near the Senate building.
In her May 15 letter to Michael Caber, Public Relations and Information Bureau director, Maria Melinda Mananghaya-Henson Ombudsman field investigation bureau director, said the requested documents would be part of its fact-finding investigation on the incident that led to the lockdown of the Senate on the days indicated.
"In case the requested documents are not available, may we request a certification under oath explaining the reason/s thereof," Mananghaya-Henson said.
"Rest assured that any documents and information to be submitted will be treated with utmost confidentiality," she added.
In filing Resolution 400, Hontiveros said the "gunfire lasted approximately three minutes, causing widespread panic among Senate staff, and members of the media covering the standoff at the Senate."
"Despite being trapped in a building with a potential active shooter, the members of the Senate media exhibited remarkable personal bravery, prioritizing the public's right to information over their own immediate safety by continuing to cover the incident as it occurred," she said.
"In an information landscape increasingly compromised by systemic online disinformation, covert influence operations, and coordinated inauthentic behavior, the impartial reporting of the Senate media serves as an essential pillar of truth, protecting the integrity of our democracy during times of national crisis," Hontiveros said.