Solons welcome dismissal of ‘baseless’ Carpio

Solons welcome dismissal of ‘baseless’ Carpio | Daily Tribune

He argued that while his wife was a public official, he himself was a private individual and should not have been included in the hearing of the Justice panel.

Among the lawmakers that were charged were Mamamayang Liberal Partylist Rep. Leila de Lima, and Akbayan Partylist Reps. Perci Cendana and Chel Diokno, all of whom were part of the committee and directly participated in the hearing.

The House members collectively agreed in separate statements on their online platforms that the case lacked basis and was an attempt to distract the public from the accountability measures against Duterte.

Cendaña said that it had been the persistent stance of their group that the case was “not worth the paper it was printed on” given that the Justice committee was merely performing its constitutional duty to initiate an impeachment.

With the trial currently at the Senate, the lawmaker stressed that it would be better for Duterte to personally face allegations in court rather than filing “useless cases.”

"From the beginning we've always held that the case filed by Mans Carpio against members of the House Committee on Justice was not worth the paper it was printed on,” he wrote in a Facebook post.

"Instead of filing a useless case against members of the [Committee on Justice] and critics, VP Sara must face her impeachment case...she should explain at the impeachment court," he added.

Diokno and De Lima , meanwhile, shared similar remarks as they expressed their belief that the justice system would ultimately prove that they did nothing wrong when it came to scrutinizing evidence against Duterte.

"We welcome the decision of the Prosecutor's office to dismiss this case. We continue to trust the justice system and, in the end, the truth and justice reigned supreme against the baseless accusations," the Akbayan representative said.

The former senator, meanwhile, wrote: “This is a welcome development, especially since this is merely a harassment suit meant to intimidate lawmakers who are just carrying out their duties."

"We will continue to demand transparency and accountability. Like before, we will face whoever is behind whatever form of oppression and abuse, for truth, justice, and accountability," she added.

Ridon, on the other hand, claimed that the case dismissal was proof that the “world of the Duterte-Carpio couple” was “starting to shrink” given that the impeachment was well within its way at the Senate.

The lawmaker, tasked with leading the presentation of evidence concerning Duterte’s unexplained wealth, said that the case was nearing the “exciting part.”

"It was only right that the court trashed the malicious and baseless case of Mans Carpio against House prosecutors and other lawmakers,” he said. “The world of the Duterte-Carpio couple is starting to shrink and we are truly heading to the exciting part."

‘File a complaint to the Ombudsman’

With the development in their case, Carpio’s lawyer Peter Paul Danao said that they would continue to explore all options available to their client, including the re-filing of the complaint at the Office of the Ombudsman.

Danao noted that the case dismissal was not a “final determination on the merits of the allegations” since the court ruled that it had no jurisdiction over such matters.

The case that was filed against officials of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and several lawmakers concerned the presentation of the joint bank records of the Duterte-Carpio couple from a period of 2006 to 2025.

The AMLC said that it had recorded covered and suspicious transactions amounting to a collective P6.77 billion between the various accounts.

Carpio and his camp have repeatedly denied having any such amount.