Drilon says Aplasca ‘exposed Senate to danger’

MANILA, Philippines — Former Senate President Franklin Drilon said suspended Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca “exposed the chamber to danger” during the shooting incident there last week.

“With what happened in the Senate, he does not deserve to be the sergeant-at-arms because, according to the initial findings, he was the first one to fire a shot,” Drilon maintained in an interview on dzMM on Thursday morning.

“In providing security to the Senate, he exposed the Senate, its employees, its staff to the danger of being hit by a bullet. This is his responsibility,” he stressed.

READ: PNP denies manipulating Senate shooting footage

Aplasca has yet to respond to the Inquirer’s request for comment as of this writing.

As tensions in the Senate rose with rumors that law enforcers were moving to arrest Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa on May 13, Aplasca and his personnel observed a National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agent at the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) premises, which is outside the chamber’s office.

Aplasca first verbally confronted the NBI agent then fired three gunshots at him, according to Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla in a Palace briefing, presenting security footage.

Aplasca was suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman following the incident.

He, however, maintained that he only fired one “warning shot” and claimed the security footage presented by Remulla was “spliced.” /das