It is 10:30pm and there's no clear explanation yet of the shenanigans at the Senate. All we know is that shots were fired, but we don't know who was firing them or why. Initial reports started to point fingers at the NBI having started things, but the head of the NBI has told the media that no agents were on the scene after they had been ordered to leave the Senate previously.
Based on the many videos that have been circulating online, we're not talking about one or two shots. There were several series of shots in quick succession. I'm no expert, but at the very least, it sounded like shots from a single source, and there were no sounds that resembled overlapping shots, as if it were a shootout between several parties. The fact that it was several series of shots was quite disturbing to hear in the videos online. Kudos to the brave journalist who did their best to provide live reports while at what was clearly a terrifying scene.
Many of the videos show that there were uniformed members of the police and what appeared to be the armed forces present, but the way they were responding to the sound of gunfire (at least based on what was captured on video) seemed oddly calm, or at least they just looked curious? The videos did not show them drawing their own firearms or even trying to direct the media away to a more secure location. They were just...there.
Given the track record of our government in general, I doubt we'll get a satisfactory explanation for what happened tonight anytime soon. There's a lot of speculation that this was all some sort of a distraction to get Senator Bato Dela Rosa out of there so he can go back into hiding to avoid the execution of the ICC arrest warrant. It's a rather convoluted scenario, but given the storied history of Philippine politics, it's not entirely far-fetched. I'm waiting for confirmation of his whereabouts before I put that story to rest.
Back to 9-1-1 and other distractions while we all wait for a proper explanation for today's ridiculousness. And we just have to brace ourselves for what the rest of the week will bring.
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