MANILA, Philippines —  Vice President Sara Duterte’s chief of staff was cited in contempt last night when she finally faced the House of Representatives, and will be detained in the chamber until Nov. 25.

Rep. France Castro of party-list ACT Teachers moved to cite in contempt lawyer Zuleika Lopez for intellectual dishonesty after she  was deemed to be making a  fool of lawmakers.

Lopez attempted to explain her side soon after Castro made the motion, but panel chairman Rep. Joel Chua of the House committee on good government and public accountability approved the motion after another legislator seconded the motion.

The hearing was suspended shortly after.

Castro,  who is Deputy Minority Leader, based her contempt move on a letter of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) dated Aug. 21 to the Commission on Audit,  advising auditors to ignore the House on the basis that the COA’s probe is not yet complete.

The letter was signed by Lopez.

“I will accept your answer, but please respect me if I say that I don’t believe you,” Castro told Lopez, adding that the more than 300 congressmen,  respect each other’s views even if they belong to multiple endeavors.

Lopez  repeatedly feigned innocence on the letter, saying she was not involved in its preparation, but “had to sign it as a matter of course,” owing to the fact that it was the collegial position taken by the OVP.

House members have been keeping their tempers, however, among them Reps. Romeo Acop and Jude Acidre, a retired police general who is also a lawyer by profession and a former chief of staff himself too, respectively.

When the hearings resumed, Lopez apologized to Castro and the committee.

“There was no intention from us to command them (COA). It was something that we requested the COA. At the end of the day, it was for COA to decide. I deeply apologize, this is a personal apology. I request the committee members to lift the order and reconsider,” she said.

Castro accepted the apology but stood her ground.

“The apology is accepted, however, in the totality of the discussion here, from 10 am until now, she was very evasive. That’s why I made the move. I stand by my motion,” she said.

Lopez will remain detained until Nov. 25, when the hearing resumes.

Sara mum on Mary Grace Piattos

Meanwhile, Duterte was mum on the identity of “Mary Grace Piattos,” whose name appeared in several liquidation documents submitted by the Office of the Vice President to the COA in connection with the OVP’s confidential fund expenses in 2022 and 2023.

In an interview with local reporters on the sidelines of the OVP’s relief activities in Butuan City as part of the agency’s 89th anniversary celebration, Duterte gave no comment on the identity of Piattos and the P1-million reward being offered by the House of Representatives for anyone who can present Piattos in person.

Duterte also laughed off lawmakers’ allegation that the OVP is intentionally hiding its personnel, especially its special disbursing officer Gina Acosta, by supposedly allowing her to go on official travels.

VP no-show at House

Despite personally receiving an invitation, Duterte snubbed the hearing yesterday.

In a one-page letter dated Nov. 19, Duterte confirmed that she personally received last Nov. 13 an invitation to attend the hearing yesterday.

However, Duterte said she already attended the hearing of the committee last Sept. 18, during which she was not asked a single question.

The letter was addressed to panel chairman,Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua. The letter was received by Chua’s office on Nov. 20.

Lopez – who went to the US earlier this month to visit a sick relative – attended yesterday’s hearing and took her oath as a resource person, but denied that she had anything to do with confidential funds.

Lopez, who served as city administrator of Davao City when Duterte was its mayor, informed the panel she was not involved in the procurement, disbursement and liquidation of funds, but only knew about it for budget purposes.

Lopez maintained that she was “not privy to” details of the confidential and intelligence funds, although she was aware of it in 2022 when they first asked the Department of Budget and Management for the P125 million.

Instead, she pointed to Lemuel Ortonio as the guy who was well-versed about it, insisting that Duterte practices “compartmentalization” in the OVP, while her tasks are mostly on programs.

Lopez was also forced to admit, upon the interpellation of Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro, that she violated rights to due process of four Department of Education officials whom Duterte forced to resign.

Lopez said that former undersecretaries Gloria Mercado, Kris Ablan, Jose Arturo de Castro and assistant secretary Christopher Lawrence Arnuco were told to leave DepEd due to the “loss of trust and confidence” of Duterte.

She admitted that they didn’t give them due process, like a notice and hearing.

Mercado, who previously testified about Duterte allegedly distributing cash envelopes to DepEd officials during her tenure as education secretary, was asked to resign without formal complaints or hearings.

Meanwhile, four OVP officials who repeatedly defied invitations and subpoenas issued by the House of Representatives investigating alleged fund misuse of Vice President Duterte may soon face criminal and administrative charges.

Taguig City Rep. Pammy Zamora moved that the House committee on good government and public accountability forward the contempt and arrest orders against lawyer Ortonio and special disbursement officers Gina Acosta and the spouses Edward and Sunshine Charry Fajarda.

In another development, the OVP submitted to the Commission on Audit liquidation documents where officials went to at least 16 places to as many as 27 areas for the disbursement of confidential funds, lawmakers learned yesterday.

A power point presentation indicated that an official, either from the OVP or DepEd when the Vice President Duterte was still DepEd secretary, went to “16 localities” spanning Luzon, the Visayas and all the way to Mindanao sometime in March 2023.

“Even if you give them a helicopter, I really think they can’t do it all in one day. I suppose you know the physical impossibility of the delivery and disbursement of the cash,” Rep. Rodge Gutierrez (1Rider party-list) called the attention of COA lawyer Gloria Camora.

He also revealed that in the OVP’s casemidori, special disbursing officer Acosta submitted a total of 103 disbursements from individuals (payment of rewards and purchase of supplies) all in a day’s work, if only to prove to COA that they spent a total of P15.8 million in just one day. –  Elizabeth Marcelo

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