Senate President Vicente Sotto III denied on Wednesday that senators being "war-like" to officials when they were tackling the government's COVID-19 vaccination program.
The description was made by Presidential spokesman Harry Roque, who said in an interview with CNN Philippines that President Duterte "could not understand" the "bellicose-like" and "war-like" demeanor of senators during their inquiry into the administration's inoculation plans last week.
But Sotto said Roque was making this up.
"I wonder if Sec Roque watched the hearing for nine hours. Tell me when, what time and who was war like or even was shouting to any of the resource persons. Imbento!" the Senate chief, who was presiding the Senate Committee of the Whole's hearings, told reporters in a message.
He continued. "I painstakingly stayed for the entire duration and I do not recall any senator to be war-like. Perhaps argumentative but not warlike."
"Why? Does he expect us to treat our resource persons with tender loving care?" he added.
Sotto maintained that the Senate only sought to help the government in implementing its immunization program for Filipinos.
"The exec department and us are both looking for what is for the greater good of the people! So he (Roque) should not drum up situations that never happened," he said.
Sotto earlier said Duterte was being fed with the "wrong" information about their public hearings even as Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go, the latter's long-time aide, said that the President was aware of what has been transpiring in their inquiry.
For questioning and seeking clarification on the government's vaccine deal with Sinovac Biotech, the President accused the Senate's members of favoring the vaccines developed by Pfizer.
Sotto said he has yet to hear from National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez about Duterte's instruction to brief senators about their negotiations with vaccine manufacturers.
Galvez has so far gotten in touch with Sen. Panfilo Lacson, he said.
The Senate Committee of the Whole is set to resume its hearing on Friday, January 22, as senators press authorities for details about the cost of the vaccines that will be purchased by the government.