The credibility of the reported security threat against the Senate was questioned, that any warning involving the institution should be properly validated and disclosed to all senators.
In a statement, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano said that if the threat was credible, every senator, member of the Secretariat, and workers inside the Senate should be informed and protected.
“If the threat is credible, then every senator, every member of the secretariat, and every individual who works within these walls deserves to be informed and protected. Security is not the concern of the bloc. It is the concern of the entire Senate,” the lawmaker said.
He raised concerns after Senate President Pro Tempore Sherwin Gatchalian earlier said the Senate had received intelligence information from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) about a possible threat to the chamber.
He also questioned why the information was allegedly shared only with some senators.
“What is the nature of the threat, who assessed it, and on what evidence?” he said.
He also questioned the NBI’s role as the source of the information, citing earlier incidents involving the bureau and Senate personnel.
The lawmaker said the same agency was involved in a previous confrontation at the Senate where, according to him, NBI personnel tried to prevent Sen. Ronald dela Rosa from performing his duties, physically assaulted a Senate employee, and provoked an armed confrontation with Senate security.
He also cited the appearance of NBI Director Melvin Matibag at a contested committee proceeding, where Cayetano said the official publicly declared which faction he considered legitimate.
“And it is the same NBI now offering itself as the sole source of an unspecified threat it refuses to disclose, even to the senators it claims to be protecting,” he noted.
The senator also asked why the NBI appeared to be leading a matter involving national intelligence and security, saying threat assessment should properly involve agencies such as the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, and the professional intelligence community.
“Has this so-called intelligence been validated by the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, or by anyone in the professional intelligence community?” he asked.
He added that the timing of the reported threat was “highly suspect,” noting that it emerged as the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s latest hearing began pressing for answers involving individuals mentioned in the proceedings.
“We are asked to accept that as a coincidence. The Filipino people are not so easily convinced,” he said.
Cayetano said his questions were not partisan but institutional, stressing that the Senate should respond to security concerns through facts, prudence, and proper validation rather than speculation or political maneuvering.
“These are not partisan questions. They are questions of governance,” he said.
He said the Senate functions best when it remains independent and guided by verified facts, warning that untested information could invite suspicion that intelligence is being used to manage narratives, pressure the institution, or place it under outside control.