MANILA — Senator Erwin Tulfo recently stirred discussion online after sharing a political cartoon that appeared to take a swipe at some of his colleagues in the upper chamber.
The shared illustration depicts Tulfo holding a gift box marked “Reforms” toward a hand carrying the Philippine flag, while three hands holding knives feature the names of Senators Robin Padilla, Pia Cayetano, and a “Senator Villar”—with an arm styled similarly to a woman’s, pointing toward Senator Camille Villar. The drawing also includes a speech bubble with the text, “Alisin yan sa Senado!!”
Refraining from naming individuals directly or providing further context, Tulfo captioned the shared image with a cryptic message.
“Nakita ko lang sa isang post…Tsk, tsk, tsk…masakit kaya saksakin sa likod, di ba friend???” he wrote.
This social media post followed a ruling by the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) on Friday, October 16, which once again threw out an amended quo warranto petition seeking to remove Tulfo from his Senate seat. The tribunal rejected the petition on two main grounds: it was submitted past the prescribed deadline, and it failed to comply with formal filing and service guidelines.
The petition was originally brought forward by Berteni Cataluña Causing, who cited allegations including dual citizenship, disloyalty to the country, breach of the anti-political dynasty rule, and insufficient educational qualifications. This follows an earlier petition dismissed by the SET in March for lacking proper form.
Meanwhile, Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson raised concerns regarding the voting conduct of three minority senators sitting on the SET panel concerning the challenge against Tulfo’s Senate membership.
“Justice and fairness went out of the window when three minority senator-members voted in favor of an out-of-time motion for reconsideration filed by a petitioner without legal standing,” Lacson stated in a social media post.
“Their motive may be deeper than personal issues against Sen Tulfo,” he added, though he chose not to name the lawmakers involved.