Walter Ahlen

traversing between the simple and the finest | adventure-seeking old soul | marketing pro

[Walter Ahlen @walterahlen]

Missing the beach 🌊🏝️

[Pop Base Philippines @popbasephil]

You are never alone. 🤍

[PSBank Official @psbankofficial]

LIBRE NAAAA!! Libre na ngayon ang InstaPay and PESONet transfers via PSBank Mobile and Online.

Download #PSBank Mobile now!

Deposits are insured by PDIC up to 1M per depositor. Regulated by BSP.

[marvièn @mvn_dn]

“Truth doesn’t mind being questioned. The lie does not like being challenged.” Mother

[Kiko Pangilinan @kikopangilinan]

SENATE BACK TO WORK FOR THE FILIPINO PEOPLE

We express our deep appreciation and commend the courageous decision of Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero to take the floor today and confront the issues facing the institution. His action sent a clear message: that his commitment to the country, to the Senate, and to the Constitution would prevail above all else.

His presence enabled the Senate to proceed with the discussion of matters that are too important to be left unresolved and too consequential to be set aside.

On the issue of quorum, this is not an uncharted matter. The Supreme Court, in Avelino v. Cuenco, recognized the principle that a quorum of 12 is determined based on the number of members who are legally able to discharge the functions of the Senate.

There is likewise an institutional precedent. In 2015, the Senate recognized a quorum of 12 senators who were within its jurisdiction. The Senate continued to perform its constitutional duties because the work of government could not be placed on hold.

At a time when the nation faces pressing challenges, the Filipino people expect their Senate to work, deliberate, and fulfill its constitutional mandate. The institution cannot remain stalled by disagreements or uncertainty. Our duty is clear: to legislate, provide oversight, and serve the public interest.

The Filipino people deserve a Senate that shows up, does its job, and places public service above politics.

It is time for the Senate to move forward and get back to work for the Filipino people.

[Bart Guingona @guingonabart]

YOU are a problem that needs to be solved, b*tch.

[Karen Davila @iamkarendavila]

Absolute disrespect for the Filipino people. What entitlement.

Mag-boycott tayo.
Huwag mag trabaho.
Hayaan natin ang mga nakabinbing panukala.

Mga senador, binabayaran kayo ng taumbayan. Pambabastos ito sa Pilipino.

[ABS-CBN News @ABSCBNNews]

Hindi ka bakla lang. Bahagi ka ng lahat. 🌈

[marvièn @mvn_dn]

mind you she has been a senator for 12 months and has authored 0 bills

she’s only there because her corrupt father, mother and brother were

[ALTStarMagic 💫 @AltStarMagic]

“Miss Karen ang problema puro siya Facebook LIVE, baka gusto niya maging vlogger na lamang?

May oras siya sa pag-vlog pero yung mga gawain niya bilang Senate President hindi niya magampanan? Sayang Miss Karen ang pa-sweldo sa kanya ng sambayanan”

GET HIM SENATOR ERWIN!!! LOUDER!!!! 😌✨

[Win Gatchalian @WinGatchalian74]

Sayang ang ipinapasahod ng taong-bayan kung hindi nagagamit ang oras ng Senado para sa trabaho.

Humigit-kumulang ₱25 milyon ang ginagastos kada araw sa operasyon ng Senado para sa kuryente, utilities, pasahod, at iba pang pangangailangan.

Kapag walang sesyon, walang batas o resolusyong maipapasa. Maaantala rin ang kumpirmasyon ng ating military personnel.

[Kiko Pangilinan @kikopangilinan]

SOLID BLOC 11: ALAN PETER CAYETANO RESIGN!

What happened today was a clear abandonment of responsibility, a dereliction of duty, and a blatant disregard of the rules that govern this institution, because the Senate cannot be made to stop working simply because its presiding officer refuses to lead.

Under Rule XIV, Sec. 41 of the Rules of the Senate, the Senate President may postpone the holding of the session AFTER consultation with the Majority Leader AND the Minority Leader. That rule was violated. This is not merely a procedural lapse—it is a direct violation of the Rules of the Senate and a serious disrespect for the institution and the Filipino people.

Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano SHOULD RESIGN as he has shown that he cannot function as the leader of the Senate.

[Kiko Pangilinan @kikopangilinan]

SOLID BLOC 11: THIS IS NOT SENATE INDEPENDENCE BUT A BOYCOTT OF DUTY

The Solid Bloc 11 minority senators were present today for the 5 p.m. resumption of session, ready to work, ready to vote on pending bills and ready to keep the Senate running, but the majority led by SP Cayetano chose not to show up.

They did not even have the courtesy to inform us when they ignored the rules, and could not extend the basic decency of telling the minority that they had no intention of convening.

Let us focus on the work, because the Senate has serious business before it, and if the majority wants to protest, deliver privilege speeches or defend its position, the proper place to do that is on the floor, not by making the chamber stand still.

Ang Senado ay hindi pag-aari ng iisang may hawak ng gavel. Institusyon ito ng taumbayan at napakadaming mahalagang panukala ang nabibinbin dahil sa drama ng mayorya.

Important measures were left hanging because of the majority’s boycott, including the Magna Carta of Barangay Health Workers, the Anti-Hospital Detention Bill, the confirmation of generals before the Commission on Appointments and the bills granting Philippine citizenship to Bennie Boatwright III and Matthew James Ramos.

Let us call this for what it is: the claim that this is about Senate independence is false, because what happened today was about the rule of law, public accountability and a lawful process before the Ombudsman and the Sandiganbayan that no senator, no bloc and no presiding officer controls.

This is a boycott because of the arrest of Senator Jinggoy Estrada, and the public should not be asked to believe another convenient line from a leadership that has repeatedly twisted the truth.

Today was a step toward accountability in a controversy that the public has long demanded action on, and after years of people asking why nothing was happening in flood control investigations, it is unacceptable to suddenly call the rule of law an attack on the Senate.

Is Senate President Alan Cayetano now questioning the rule of law?

Sa totoo lang, ang gusto nila ay kampihan, hindi prinsipyo. Gusto nila sumama kami sa boycott, patahimikin ang Senado at gamitin ang minority para manatili ang Senate President sa puwesto habang iniiwasan ang tunay na test of numbers sa floor.

This may be the first time in decades that Senate work stopped because the presiding officer himself refused to work, because even during typhoons and the height of the pandemic, work was suspended only because of necessity or because systems still had to be set up, not because the leadership chose a boycott of duty.

The public has every right to ask whether SP Cayetano is repeating what he did in the House of Representatives, when questions were raised about a leader refusing to step aside, refusing to convene and holding up proceedings when the numbers were no longer certain.

The question now is just as serious: will they do this again for the next two session days, and will they keep the Senate idle simply to avoid facing the numbers on the floor?

The Senate should open its doors, call the session to order and return to work, because no Facebook post, no appeal to institutional pride and no political drama can erase the basic duty of senators to show up, follow the law and serve the people.

And lastly, we call on the Filipino people to watch the Senate closely, because when an institution refuses to work, public vigilance becomes the people’s first line of defense.

[Kiko Pangilinan @kikopangilinan]

JOINT STATEMENT ON THE SENATE MINORITY WALKOUT

We strongly condemn what appears to be an attempt to rush a major change in the Senate Rules, especially when several members of the minority still wanted to speak and raise serious questions on the floor.

Bakit kailangang madaliin? Bakit kailangang pigilan ang mga gustong magsalita? Bakit kailangang i-divide ang house kung marami pang senador ang nagtatanong tungkol sa proseso?

Minamadali ba ang rule change na ito dahil gusto nilang maka boto si Senator Bato? At ngayong may mga ulat na may mga majority senators na maaaring arestuhin?

We walked out because what happened on the floor looked less like orderly deliberation. The proposed rule change affects how senators may attend sessions, participate in proceedings and exercise their mandate through remote means, and such a measure should be opened to healthy public debate instead of being rushed by the tyranny of the majority.

We have always welcomed healthy discussions on the floor, but this should mean allowing all members to be heard, not forcing the chamber to move at the speed preferred by the majority.

At the time the motion was taken up, there was no duly constituted Committee on Rules and there was not even an elected Majority Leader who could properly guide a rules amendment through the regular process.

How could there have been any action or discussion before the Committee on Rules when no Committee on Rules has been organized to date?

With due respect, the answer that no Senate rule had been violated does not settle the matter, because the rules cannot be treated as a matter of convenience when the very process for amending them is under serious question.

The timing raises a question that the public deserves to hear debated openly. Kaya pinili naming tumayo at iwan ang majority sa plenary. Kaya kami nagdesisyon to question the quorum and call for adjournment.

If the proposal is truly defensible, then let it pass through the proper route.

We owe it to the people who voted for us to do our mandate. This is why we want more time to discuss this further.

[Kiko Pangilinan @kikopangilinan]

Solid Bloc. 🇵🇭

[Nico Quejano @nicoquejano]

Then die.

[Dino Singson de Leon @iamdinodeleon]

This is a result of the Senate as an institution being used to a) obstruct justice in the case of Bato Dela Rosa, and b) evade accountability in the case of Sara Duterte.

Wala silang pakialam sa Saligang Batas basta makatakas lamang sila. Mga kawatan!

[juls @chstarkive]

if bato is not arrested by tonight, everyone involved in his escape should be sued for obstruction of justice. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW!

[raffy magno @raffymagno]

All this chaos.

Just to protect the Dutertes and their allies.

The country has sacrificed too much—our institutions, our democracy, and far too many lives—for the survival of people who believe they are above accountability.