MASADA backs majority boycott, calls it ‘passive resistance’

The Masa Sara Duterte Alliance (MASADA) on Tuesday described the boycott by majority senators led by Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano as an act of passive resistance — an ancient form of nonviolent protest and noncooperation aimed at protecting the Senate as the country's last bulwark of democracy.

Benito Ranque, MASADA founding chairman, said the events unfolding in the Senate were triggered when minority senators walked out of a previous session, resulting in a lack of quorum and the eventual adjournment of proceedings.

“It was the minority who initially adopted the passive resistance strategy that actually boomeranged when Senator Jinggoy Estrada was arrested, reducing the majority's numbers to 11 versus the minority's 11,” Ranque said.

“The situation is a stalemate, and it's now the turn of the majority to use passive resistance considering the awesome power of the executive now hovering over the Senate,” he added.

Ranque said passive resistance remains an enduring tool for social and political change, relying on the withdrawal of public consent to challenge what participants perceive as oppressive authority.

MASADA earlier denounced what it called a direct attack on the Philippine Senate, which it described as the last bastion of democracy in the country.

The group also cited the confrontation that took place in the Senate and claimed it had drawn international attention.

“The attack on the Philippine Senate will be recorded in the annals of history as a direct assault on the last bastion of democracy to enforce an arrest warrant issued by a foreign court,” Ranque said.

He added that it was ironic because President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., when he was still a senator, had described the Senate as an institution that protects democracy by serving as a check on executive power.

Ranque said that although President Marcos had denied ordering the operation, the incident had already caused damage and raised questions about the executive branch's role in enforcing actions related to the International Criminal Court.

He further claimed that the failed attempt to arrest Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa had thwarted what he described as a broader effort connected to the March 11, 2025 transfer of former President Rodrigo Duterte to The Hague, Netherlands, where he faces proceedings before the International Criminal Court over allegations of crimes against humanity.