ULTIMATUM
THE House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability chaired by Manila Representative Joel Chua yesterday issued a final ultimatum to subpoena officials from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) to attend the hearing scheduled today or face arrest.
The panel, also known as the House Blue Ribbon Committee, is probing the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds allocated to the OVP and the Department of Education (DepEd) under the leadership of Vice President Sara Duterte.
“The committee has summoned these officials multiple times, yet they continue to disregard our lawful requests to appear,” Chua pointed out.
He added: “These absences reflect a blatant disregard for the authority of Congress and are unacceptable. If they fail to appear again, we are prepared to issue orders for their arrest.”
The congressional probe took a contentious turn after it was revealed that OVP Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez left the country on November 4, a day before she was scheduled to appear before the panel.
Lopez, along with six other OVP officials, was subpoenaed to provide explanations regarding the handling of CIFs under Vice President Duterte’s watch.
The committee previously requested the Department of Justice to place Lopez and other OVP officials on an immigration lookout bulletin amid concerns they might evade the probe.
While the bulletin does not prohibit departure, it heightened the committee’s concerns about their non-compliance.
Other OVP officials under subpoena are Lemuel Ortonio, Assistant Chief of Staff and Chair of the Bids and Awards Committee; Rosalynne Sanchez, Administrative and Financial Services Director; Gina Acosta, Special Disbursing Officer; Julieta Villadelrey, Chief Accountant; and Sunshine Charry Fajarda and Edward Fajarda, former DepEd aides who reportedly transitioned to the OVP after Duterte’s resignation from the department.
Thus far, only Sanchez and Villadelrey have confirmed attendance at the Nov. 11 hearing, according to Chua.
Should others continue their non-compliance, it would mark their continued absence despite subpoenas and repeated warnings from the committee.
“The committee has been more than fair in giving these officials ample opportunities to cooperate,” Chua pointed out.
“If they fail to appear this time, they leave us no choice but to impose heavier penalties, including contempt and potential arrest and detention,” he reiterated.
The committee is seeking the explanations of the seven OVP officers on the alleged misuse of P500 million in confidential funds of the OVP and an additional P125 million of DepEd when Duterte was education secretary.
The Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged almost half of the total and disallowed P73 million of the P125 million spent by the Vice President’s office in just 11 days during the last quarter of 2022.
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