The continuing “defiance” of Vice President Sara Duterte, this time to heed the summons of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), clearly indicates that she is “above the law,” a House leader said Friday.
Duterte was expected to appear before the NBI on Friday for the initial investigation of her supposed assassination threat against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Marcos, and House Speaker Martin Romualdez, potentially violating Republic Act 11479 or the Anti-Terrorism Law, among others.
The VP, however, was a no-show, reportedly claiming she was unaware that the House probe, which was to coincide with the NBI hearing, had been canceled.
“By refusing to comply with the subpoena, she is sending a message: ‘The law doesn’t apply to me.’ That is not leadership. That is arrogance,” House Deputy Majority Leader Paolo Ortega V said.
He added, “VP Duterte needs to stop acting like she’s above the law and start respecting the very institutions she’s supposed to uphold. If she continues to defy the law, she’s not just undermining the NBI; she’s undermining the entire justice system.”
The House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability postponed its scheduled inquiry into Duterte’s use of confidential funds on Friday to give way to the NBI’s investigation.
Its chairperson Joel Chua said the decision was made to prevent Duterte from using the House hearing as an excuse to evade the NBI probe.
“This is another excuse. It was in the news. Almost the entire Philippines knew that the committee early canceled so that our Vice President could attend the NBI hearing,” Assistant Majority Leader Jefferson Khonghun told reporters in a virtual briefing on Friday.
“Our Vice President is getting used to defying summons,” he added.
Previously, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said that the VP could face complaints for libel, defamation, and grave threats for her kill order against the Marcos couple and the Speaker, although Duterte contended that her statement was just “maliciously taken out of logical context.”
Both the DOJ and NBI have pronounced that they are willing to cooperate and even give way for the Ombudsman to take over Duterte’s case.
Earlier, Justice Undersecretary Jesse Andres said it’s only Ombudsman Samuel Martires who has the sole authority to suspend Duterte after such a threat.
Martires, however, advised Andres to “shut up,” stating that although they could take over any investigation at any stage of proceedings, he has yet to find anything to probe.