14/05/2026
The BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN) condemned the dramatic events that unfolded in the Philippine Senate last night, describing them as a dangerous escalation of elite political maneuvering and proof that the country’s ruling institutions move with urgency only when protecting the powerful while remaining painfully slow in addressing the worsening economic crisis faced by millions of Filipino workers.
Following the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte and the recent Senate coup that removed Senate President Tito Sotto and installed Alan Peter Cayetano as Senate President, tensions exploded inside the Senate as security forces attempted to serve the ICC arrest warrant against Senator Ronald dela Rosa, one of the key architects of the bloody drug war under former President Rodrigo Duterte. Reports of a lockdown, gunfire, confusion inside the chamber, and dela Rosa’s subsequent disappearance have deepened the constitutional and political crisis now gripping the country.
BIEN President Mylene Cabalona said the events expose a government machinery that acts swiftly to shield political allies while workers continue to suffer under rising prices, stagnant wages, and worsening insecurity.
“Habang milyon milyong manggagawa ang araw araw na nilulunod sa krisis sa kabuhayan, taas presyo, at kawalan ng makabuluhang dagdag sahod, ang gobyerno ay mabilis lamang kumilos kapag ang interes ng mga makapangyarihan ang kailangang protektahan. Kapag ordinaryong mamamayan ang humihingi ng ayuda at kaginhawaan, napakabagal nila. Pero kapag political survival ng kanilang mga kaalyado ang usapan, buong makinarya ng estado ang agad umaandar.”
Cabalona said the Senate’s transformation into a sanctuary for those facing serious international charges is an insult to democratic accountability and to the thousands of victims of Duterte’s bloody anti drug war.
“Hindi dapat gawing kanlungan ng mga inaakusahan ng krimen ang Senado. Ang pagtatangkang ikubli at protektahan si Bato dela Rosa mula sa pananagutan ay tahasang paglapastangan sa hustisya. Ito ay insulto sa libo libong pamilya na hanggang ngayon ay naghahanap ng katarungan para sa kanilang mga mahal sa buhay.”
She stressed that accountability cannot stop with dela Rosa or Sara Duterte alone.
“Hindi sapat na isa o dalawa lamang ang papanagutin. Lahat ng sangkot, dapat managot. Mula sa mga nag utos, mga nagpatupad, mga nagkubli, at mga patuloy na gumagamit ng kapangyarihan para takasan ang hustisya, walang dapat makalusot.”
Cabalona also said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. cannot evade responsibility for the deepening political instability while his administration remains ineffective in confronting the economic crisis battering workers.
“Hindi maaaring maghugas kamay si Marcos habang lumalala ang kaguluhang ito. Habang abala ang mga naghaharing paksyon sa kanilang sariling bangayan at pagtatakipan, ang mga manggagawa ang patuloy na nagdurusa sa mababang sahod, kontraktwalisasyon, mataas na presyo ng bilihin, at kawalan ng sapat na proteksyon sa trabaho.”
She added that the same urgency now displayed in political crisis management must be directed toward addressing workers’ demands for wage increases, price controls, labor rights protections, and secure employment.
“Kung kayang kumilos ng gobyerno buong magdamag para sa krisis ng mga politiko, dapat mas kaya nilang kumilos para sa gutom, hirap, at pangangailangan ng mamamayan. Ngunit malinaw na hindi ito ang kanilang prayoridad.”
Cabalona said BIEN stands with all democratic forces demanding genuine accountability and an end to impunity.
“Duterte panagutin. Marcos singilin. Bato arestuhin. Lahat ng sangkot, dapat managot. Hindi dapat manaig ang kapangyarihan ng iilan laban sa hustisya ng nakararami.”
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