NUJP urges Senate to grant media access amid building lockdown

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) called on the Senate of the Philippines to allow deployed media teams to cover current affairs after the Senate ordered a lockdown on its premises, May 11.

“We urge Senate leadership to allow colleagues access to and egress from the chamber as they perform their duties,” NUJP stated in a Facebook post.

The organization said that journalists inside the Senate complex are not allowed to go out and those outside cannot enter.

NUJP stressed that restricting media movement during a major national issue hampers the public’s right to timely and accurate formation, especially amid heightened political tensions. 

The lockdown follows after the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) allegedly attempted to arrest Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, with barbed wire installed at the gate and the rolling down of roller doors at the main entrance.

It also came after reports of a supposed pending arrest warrant linked to the investigation of the International Criminal Court into the Duterte administration’s war on drugs campaign.

Police personnel were deployed around the Senate entrance gates as authorities heightened security measures amid tensions surrounding Dela Rosa’s return to the Senate after months of absence.

As of this writing, the lockdown was lifted at around 7:30 p.m. from approximately 4:11 p.m. after a commotion between the Senate Office of Sergeant-at-Arms’ alleged personnel and NBI agents.