Impeachment speculation vs. VP Sara ‘diversionary tactics’ –solons

By Filane Mikee Cervantes, Philippine News Agency

‘DIVERSIONARY TACTICS’. House leaders dismiss as “diversionary tactics” Vice President Sara Duterte’s remarks that impeachment efforts against her are being used to obscure alleged shortcomings of the administration in a press conference on Thursday (Nov. 28, 2024). From left are House Assistant Majority Leader and Zambales 1st District Rep. Jefferson Khonghun, Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability chair and Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua, and Deputy Majority Leader and La Union 1st District Rep. Paolo Ortega (Photo: House of Representatives of the Philippines/Facebook)

MANILA — House leaders on Thursday dismissed as “diversionary tactics” Vice President Sara Duterte’s remarks that impeachment efforts against her are being used to obscure alleged shortcomings of the administration.

In a press conference, House Assistant Majority Leader and Zambales 1st District Rep. Jefferson Khonghun described Duterte’s comments as an attempt to shift attention away from the ongoing House investigation into the alleged misuse of PHP612.5 million in confidential funds by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) under Duterte’s leadership.

“Well, that’s another diversionary tactic ng ating Bise Presidente para iiwas na naman ang nangyari sa pondo ng [OVP] at sa confidential fund ng [DepEd] (Well, that’s another diversionary tactic by our Vice President to divert attention from the issues surrounding the OVP’s funds and the confidential fund of DepEd),” Khonghun said.

Khonghun said the issue that needs to be addressed by Duterte is the allegations of mismanagement of her office’s confidential funds.

“Ang tunay na usapin dito ay may nawawalang pera ng ating gobyerno. Hindi naging tama ang paggastos, nagkaroon ng kapabayaan sa pag-handle ng confidential funds, at kailangan may managot dito (The real issue here is that government funds are missing. There was improper spending, negligence in handling confidential funds, and someone must be held accountable.),” Khonghun said.

Khonghun underscored the need for transparency and accountability.

No impeachment discussions yet

Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua, chair of the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability, clarified that impeachment is not currently on the table.

“Sa totoo lang, ang impeachment ay hindi pa po napag-uusapan dahil naka-focus pa kami dito sa mga iba pong usapin (To be honest, impeachment has not yet been discussed because we are focused on other issues),” he said.

Chua said the primary objective of the investigation is to propose legislative measures to prevent similar instances of fund misuse.

“By next week, magpa-file kami ng mga House bill na naging produkto po ng investigation (By next week, we will file House bills that are the result of the investigation),” he added.

Focus on legislative work

Deputy Majority Leader and La Union 1st District Rep. Paolo Ortega echoed the sentiment, emphasizing the importance of staying focused on ongoing hearings.

“Kami naman dito, ang katotohanan at pagtuloy ng hearings ang aming tinitignan dahil ‘yan ay utang namin sa taong bayan (Here, we focus on the truth and the continuation of hearings because it is our duty to the public),” he said.

Ortega reassured the public of the House’s commitment to its legislative responsibilities.

Khonghun reiterated that impeachment is not being prioritized by the House.

“Hindi pa nga namin pinag-uusapan patungkol sa impeachment dahil abalang-abala kami lalung-lalo na dito sa aming mga gawain sa Kongreso (We haven’t even discussed impeachment because we’re very busy with our work in Congress),” Khonghun said.