An embarrassing moment for the Senate.

That's how Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre described the events in Senate plenary on Monday, May 25 when Senator Imee Marcos presented a video alleging a Charter change (Cha-cha) plot in Congress amid the upcoming impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Acidre framed the "video stunt" as a warning sign of how political discourse was "being dragged down by propaganda dressed up as legislative debate".

“Sen. Imee Marcos managed to do something worse than weaken her own argument: she reminded the public why many Filipinos are tired of politics built on intrigue, edited narratives and reckless insinuations. When a senator uses the floor to amplify material that collapses under scrutiny, that is embarrassing for the institution she represents,” said the congressman, who refused to mince words.

“If this becomes normal, every public official can simply play a video, hint at a conspiracy and let social media do the damage before facts can catch up. That is political vandalism,” he added.

Senator Marcos withdrew the video after senators objected to its presentation.

The belief is that the material linked administration figures to alleged constitutional assembly moves. As such, it was criticized by minority senators as a “propaganda tool” and “fake news".

Acidre agreed with this take. “This is everything that has gone wrong in Philippine politics: chismis dressed as privilege speech, propaganda passed off as evidence and colleagues dragged into a storyline without the discipline of proof," he said.

"The Senate deserves argument, evidence and statesmanship, not content designed for outrage,” he stressed.

Senators recently convened as an impeachment court for the case of the respondent, Duterte. The actual trial is expected to begin in July, with Senator Marcos and her 23 colleagues set to act as "senator-judges".

Acidre said the controversy should concern citizens beyond the personalities involved because a privilege speech was supposed to be a tool for accountability, not a shield for unverified narratives that can injure reputations and inflame public distrust.

“Public office is powerful because words spoken from the floor carry the weight of the institution. Kaya kapag mali ang gamit ng platform, mas malaki ang damage (the damage is greater if the platform is used for the wrong reason), because fake narratives do not only attack individuals, they poison the public’s faith in democratic spaces,” he pointed out.

Acidre says Senator Marcos should recognize that withdrawing the video does not erase the damage caused by placing it before the public through the Senate floor.

“Withdrawal is welcome, but accountability does not end when the video is pulled back. You cannot throw mud inside the Senate, withdraw the bucket and then pretend the floor is clean."

He said the Senate can only regain public trust by rejecting performative politics and insisting that its floor remain a place for truth, lawmaking and responsible scrutiny.

“Our politics needs less fake news and more truth, less ambush by insinuation and more work that actually helps people. Senator Imee owes the Senate, her colleagues and the public a higher standard than what we saw,” Acidre said.