A Customs police official whose firearm was used by his son in the fatal Ateneo de Zamboanga University shooting may face liability if an investigation finds negligence or an intentional criminal act, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said Wednesday.
Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, BOC deputy chief of staff Chris Noel Bendijo said the agency has already relieved the official from his post and placed him under preventive suspension.
Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro on Wednesday said her remark that some teachers have failed to uphold proper conduct and even taught students to be disrespectful were taken out of context, adding that she was not referring to all teachers nor was she blaming them for school violence.
“Nais lang po natin ipakita sa mga guro na hindi po kayo lahat. Hindi po kayo sinisisi. Ito ay pagpapaalala,” Castro said at a press briefing.
(We just want to show the teachers that I am not referring to all of you. You are not being blamed. That was a reminder.)
The Department of Education (DepEd) needs to hire 48,000 school counselor associates nationwide, but its 2026 budget currently covers only 10,000 positions, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said Wednesday.
Angara said the goal is to eventually have one school counselor associate in every school to strengthen mental health and psychosocial support for learners.
The shooter in the fatal Ateneo de Zamboanga University shooting was able to bring firearms into the school after arriving in his father’s car and bypassing the security check, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said Wednesday.
In a press conference, DILG Secretary Jonvic Remulla said only people entering through the school's pedestrian gate are subjected to bag inspections.
“Ateneo de Zamboanga had 25 security guards, with 15 on duty that morning and 10 on duty that night. The system at Ateneo is that if you enter through the pedestrian gate, your bag is inspected,” he said.
The Department of Education (DepEd) is looking to hire counselor associates as part of efforts to strengthen student support following the fatal shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said.
Angara noted that the department is looking at hiring counselor associates with degrees in psychology and related fields amid a shortage of professional guidance counselors in schools.
He said the professionalization of guidance counseling has made recruitment difficult because professional guidance counselors are required to have a master’s degree.
“What we have are counselor associates with a degree in psychology and other related [fields],” Angara said during the situation briefing in Zamboanga City.
The move is part of a broader effort to ensure that schools provide support not only for students’ academic needs but also for their psychological and emotional well-being.
The student wounded in the fatal shooting incident inside a school in Zamboanga City is recovering in the hospital, the provincial disaster risk reduction and management office head said on Wednesday.
"She's confined in the hospital and she's doing fine," said Elmer Apolinario, head of the Zamboanga City Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, in an interview with Super Radyo dzBB.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara on Wednesday cautioned the public against drawing conclusions from unverified reports that bullying or online influences may have played a role in the fatal shooting at a private school in Zamboanga City.
Angara said reports that the student believed to be the shooter had been bullied had yet to be established.
“The bullying aspect, we don’t know anything about that,” Angara said in an ambush interview in the city.
He also said there was no conclusive information at this point that the student had been depressed.
The student who carried out the fatal shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University (ADZU) on Tuesday was reportedly under pressure over his grades and experiencing depression, Zamboanga City Mayor Khymer Adan Olaso said Wednesday.
Olaso made the statement when asked about the motive and target of the shooter.
“Medyo ano 'yung bata kasi 'yung grades niya hindi mataas. Although he's an honor student, kaso may parang hinahabol siyang grades,” he told GMA News’ Unang Balita in an interview.
(He's a bit [agitated] because his grades were not high. Although he's an honor student, he was trying to get higher grades.)
Following the recent school shooting incident in Zamboanga City, certified emergency manager Martin Aguda Jr. shared safety tips to remember when faced with a threat at school.
On Wednesday’s episode of “Unang Hirit,” Aguda said that when an active shooter enters a school, knowing what to do in the first few moments can be critical to survival.
Run
The priority is to get away from the attacker if there is a safe opportunity to do so.
Hide
If escaping is not possible, the next option is to hide. Students should enter a classroom, lock the door, put a barricade at the door if possible, turn off the lights, and stay out of sight.
Fight
Fighting should be considered only when there is no safe way to run or hide and the attacker has entered the room.
When is it safe to evacuate?
Even after the immediate threat appears to have passed, students should not simply leave their hiding places without confirmation that it is safe.
Aguda said people should wait for instructions from law enforcement or police before coming out.
Inalis sa puwesto ng Bureau of Customs (BOC) ang isang opisyal ng port police na may-ari ng baril na ginamit umano ng estudyanteng sangkot sa pamamaril sa Junior High School campus ng Ateneo de Zamboanga University (ADZU).
Naganap ang pamamaril nitong Martes, Agosto 18, 2026, na ikinasawi ng dalawang estudyante, kasama ang namaril, ayon sa ulat ng GMA Regional TV News.
Sa isang pahayag, sinabi ni BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno na ang opisyal ng Customs na isinailalim sa preventive suspension ay ama ng estudyanteng namaril.
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