Palace on Senate blue ribbon findings vs. Duterte: No comment until report is official

Malacañang on Wednesday deferred comment on the Senate blue ribbon committee's report finding President Rodrigo Duterte liable for betrayal of public trust, saying the panel's findings is not yet final.

"The report is yet to be adopted by the Committee. It was a partial, unofficial finding," acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles said in an interview on ANC.

"It's something we cannot comment on because it is not yet official. Mahirap magsalita about it and wala pa kaming copy rin [It is difficult to comment and we are yet to get a copy too]."

The Senate blue ribbon report was in connection with the government's P8-billion pandemic supply purchases from Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation in 2020.

It said Duterte committed betrayal of public trust because "he was the one who appointed all the people who approved these transactions and aggressively protected and defended them when they were caught in this horrible crime against our people." 

The committee said Duterte betrayed public trust, in violation of his oath of office under the 1987 Constitution, by:

• appointing Michael Yang, a foreign national, as “Economic Adviser to the President” in 2018. Yang then introduced numerous Chinese suppliers with whom the government transacted and in the process enriched himself immensely;
• accepting that an undercapitalized corporation owned by a Taiwanese fugitive, and with proven ties to Michael Yang, had dominance over pandemic procurement of COVID-19 supplies;
• seeking to discredit COA, whose Constitutional duty it is to conduct an audit of all government expenditures, and which had previously flagged the anomalous transaction, and through threats, prevent it from functioning;
• trying to discredit the credibility of the Senate by publicly attacking, maligning, and disrespecting the Senate as an institution, a co-equal branch of government, and its members duly performing their duties, and in doing so attempting to render inutile the Senate’s role in investigating corruption;
• ordering the issuance of a patently illegal memorandum preventing his cabinet members and other officials of his administration from attending the hearings; and
• refusing to run after his appointees despite calls from the public and the Senate to compel their attendance, in order to further the search for truth,; failing to hold accountable these appointees for one of the biggest plunders of the Philippines' coffers in recent history.

The report also said that since Duterte could not be sued during his tenure of office or actual incumbency, he should be dealt with after his term ends on June 30, 2022.

Nograles, however, assured the public that Duterte does not tolerate corruption and would not stand in the way of filing criminal charges against those liable.

"President Duterte has been repeatedly saying that those who need to face charges should face charges. Wala siyang pinoprotektahan dito at kung sino ang dapat kasuhan, kasuhan niyo [He is not protecting anybody and those who need to be charged should be charged]," he said.

"Ang hindi lang niya gusto ay nagagamit ang Senate hearing bilang plataporma sa pulitika na nadadamay ang trabaho ng kanyang mga kalihim," he added.

(What the President does not approve of is the Senate hearing serving as a platform for politicians and interfering with the schedules of Cabinet officials.)

Under the 1987 Constitution, betrayal of public trust is an impeachable offense. —KBK, GMA News