Sen. Bato Dela Rosa faces backlash on social media for his remarks against Akbayan Party-list Representative Perci Cendaña, a known stroke survivor.
Dela Rosa drew criticism after saying he would punch Cendaña to make his face “even,” a remark deemed inappropriate by the public, especially given Cendaña’s medical condition.
Cendaña responded via social media, explaining that his facial asymmetry is due to a stroke he survived.
In a Facebook post, he stated, “TABINGI ANG MUKHA ko dahil ang ‘BAKLANG NGIWI,’ na ito ay stroke survivor. Yakap na mahigpit sa mga kapwa ko stroke survivor.” (My face is asymmetrical because this ‘gay lopsided smile’ is a stroke survivor. Sending tight hugs to my fellow stroke survivors.)
The congressman also challenged Dela Rosa to show the same courage in addressing China’s aggressive actions in the West Philippine Sea and in facing the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is investigating former President Duterte’s war on drugs.
On Sunday, Dela Rosa issued a public apology, taking responsibility for his remarks.
“The past few days have weighed heavily on Filipinos, especially sa aming mga Mindanaoans at ibang Cebuano speaking people. Maraming nagalit, at dahil sa nag-empathize ako sa galit nila, nakapagbitiw ako ng mga salitang hindi maganda at nakapanakit ng damdamin ng iba,” (The past few days have been difficult for Filipinos, especially for us Mindanaoans and other Cebuano-speaking people. Many were angered, and because I empathized with their anger, I made statements that were inappropriate and hurtful.)
He added, “I apologize for what I said and did, particularly in failing to see the bigger picture. My apologies to Congressman Perci Cendaña for my offensive comments on his person. I wish him good health. I make no excuses and I take full responsibility for the hurt my words have caused.”
The clash between the two officials stemmed from Cendaña’s endorsement of the first impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte, filed by civil society organizations, religious leaders, sectoral representatives, and families of extrajudicial killing victims on December 2, 2024.
The complaint accuses Duterte of culpable violations of the Constitution, graft and corruption, bribery, betrayal of public trust, and other serious offenses.
Cendaña accepted Dela Rosa’s apology, stating, “Nawa’y magsilbi itong mahalagang aral, na ang tunay na lider ay hindi lamang may kapangyarihan kundi may malasakit, to keep our political discourse rationale and humane, at ang panawagan ng pananagutan ay hindi personal na atake kanino man kundi responsibilidad ng lahat ng mamamayan.” (May this serve as an important lesson that true leadership is not just about power but also compassion, to keep our political discourse rational and humane, and that the call for accountability is not a personal attack on anyone but a responsibility of all citizens.)