The House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability has warned of harsher penalties for seven officials from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) who failed to appear at the fourth hearing on the alleged misuse of confidential funds.
Despite repeated summons, the OVP officials, including Chief-of-Staff Atty. Zuleika Lopez and Edward and Sunshine Fajarda, submitted a position paper asserting their right not to attend due to pending court cases, citing “sub judice.”
ABANG LINGKOD Party-list Representative Joseph Stephen Paduano moved to reissue a subpoena ad testificandum against the officials. Manila 6th District Representative Bienvenido Abante Jr. criticized the committee for being too lenient, noting that the OVP officials have ignored the investigation four times, allegedly under the directive of Vice President Sara Duterte.
“This is an insult to the House panel,” Abante stated, urging the officials to attend the fifth hearing and not challenge the committee to issue a contempt order.
Good Government and Public Accountability Chairman Joel Chua requested the Department of Justice to issue a lookout bulletin order against the seven OVP officials. Chua also criticized Duterte for holding a press conference instead of addressing the committee, pointing out that press conferences allow for prepared answers without oath-taking and selective questioning.
The controversy continues to unfold as the committee seeks accountability and transparency from the OVP.
