“All 13 of us are being targeted.”
That was what Senator Imee Marcos revealed in light of the recent filings and pursuance of cases against fellow Senate Majority members Rodante Marcoleta, Jinggoy Estrada, and Joel Villanueva from the Office of the Ombudsman.
Marcos stated that there were active efforts to conduct case-buildups on all of the majority members in an effort to thin out the group through different forms of cases.
“Palagay ko lahat kami talagang pinupuntirya. As a matter of fact, maraming tumatawag, maraming nagtetext sa amin, taga-DOJ, taga-OMB, na sinasabi na kaming lahat, yung 13, nagke-case build up na raw,” she said during a media forum in Quezon CIty this Wednesday, 27 May.
“Whether this is true or not, I certainly pray that this persecution, if that is what it will be, will not proceed. Hindi naman maganda ito lalo’t hinaharap natin ang napakatinding emergency,” she added.
The senator further expressed that the recent developments were quite alarming, noting that such forms of aggression was not something that they personally undertook when they were stripped of their positions during the time that former Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto took over the leadership of Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero.
“Noon naman natalo kami, hindi kami bumoto kay Senator Tito Sotto, wala naman umalma, quiet lang kami, kahit tinanggal lahat ng aming komite, ayos lang. Kasi naniniwala kami sa proseso, hindi kami kapit-tuko sa posisyon,” she stated.
Bigger issues
Amid all the recent turmoil and issues at the Senate, Marcos sought for the probe into the multibillion peso flood control scandal to finally be re-opened as it had been supposedly sidelined in favor of the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte.
She noted that the only individuals that were being imprisoned were officials from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and private contractors, while the supposed “Big Fish” in the issue remains nowhere to be seen.
“Sana magkaroon na tayo ng liwanag kasi napakatagal na nito kung tutuusin, kelan ba ‘to nag umpisa, matagal na eh, parang higit pa sa baby, nine months na, mag-iisang taon na, inip na inip na yung mga tao, na parang nakalusot ang mga salarin,” she said.
Marcos further questioned why the investigations were seemingly all over the place as probes have shifted to focus on the Davao region and Senators instead of dwelling into the budget insertions that were carried out at the House of Representatives.
No favoritism
The sentiments of the senator came just a day after Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla had announced that both Estrada and Villanueva were set to be filed with separate plunder cases in relation to the flood control scandal at the Sandiganbayan in the next two weeks through a press conference.
During the same presser, Remulla maintained that he was not necessarily targeting anyone and that their job was to investigate all public officials that were accused of unlawful actions.
“Ang trabaho ng Ombudsman lahat eh, ngayon, marami akong pinirmahan na preventive suspensions sa mayors…marami kaming pinupursue na kaso dito kaya lang, ang public interest syempre nandito sa flood control,” he mentioned.
The Ombudsman also noted that they were facing some trouble when it came to gathering documents from the House as the Secretariat of the Committee on Appropriations refused to receive their subpoena for information related to budget insertions in the 2024 and 2025 national budgets.
Remulla noted that the cases were linked to former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, who along with Escudero are being investigated as allegedly receiving massive kickbacks through the budget insertions.