GSIS sought NBI’s help to secure compound before Senate shootout

MANILA, Philippines — The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) sought the help of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to ensure the safety of everyone on the premises on Wednesday, when a shootout occurred in the nearby Senate building amid reports that Sen. Ronald dela Rosa was poised to be arrested.

READ: Palace: Senate sergeant-at-arms fired first as warning shot to NBI

Based on the letter shared by NBI Director Melvin Matibag with the INQUIRER, GSIS President and General Manager Wick Veloso on Wednesday requested the NBI leader to deploy personnel at the GSIS premises, where the Senate is located.

According to Veloso, NBI personnel’s assistance would help “in maintaining peace, order, and security in the area.”

“Their presence would greatly help ensure the safety of all individuals within the premises, prevent any untoward incidents, and support the orderly conduct of ongoing activities,” Veloso’s letter read.

Matibag said in a Palace press briefing on Thursday that they had already been in verbal communication with the GSIS regarding its request before receiving the formal letter around 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

The NBI agents arrived at the premises around 6 p.m., an hour after receiving the formal letter.

Also in the briefing on Thursday, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro earlier addressed the shooting incident, saying that Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca first fired a warning shot after noticing the presence of the NBI agents in the area. 

READ: Matibag: Senate shooting ‘suspect’ not an NBI employee but a ‘volunteer’

Aplasca then admitted to being the first to discharge his firearm, explaining that it was a warning shot against NBI personnel.

Meanwhile, following the incident, Dela Rosa escaped the Senate at around 2:30 a.m. on Thursday.

Newly elected Senate President Alan Cayetano then said Dela Rosa is no longer under the Senate’s protective custody since “he left voluntarily.”

It was on Monday when Dela Rosa was placed under the Senate protective custody following the confirmation of an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against him in connection with his role in the bloody war on drugs of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration.

The senator is among the personalities tagged as co-perpetrators in the crimes against humanity case filed against former President Rodrigo Duterte before the ICC, as he served as the Philippine National Police chief from 2016 to 2018.

Around 12,000 to 30,000 individuals were killed during the Duterte administration’s bloody drug war, as per the investigation by then-ICC prosecutor Karim Khan./coa