Ombudsman warns House SecGen of suspension or expulsion over SALN issue

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Monday warned House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil of possible suspension or expulsion over her office's refusal to receive the subpoena for the Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net worth (SALN) of one of the chamber's employees.

“We have issued subpoenas to the House of Representatives on the SALN on one of their employees. Ngunit ayaw po tanggapin ng Congress (House) ang subpoena na aming pinapadala. Ayaw tanggapin na security. Public notice lang po, sa susunod na gawin sa amin ito ng Kongreso, I will cite the Secretary General in contempt,” Remulla said in a press conference.

(The House is repeatedly defying the subpoena that we are issuing. The security does not even want to receive it. Here's a public notice: next time that this defiance happens again, I will cite the Secretary General in contempt.)

Remulla was referring to the subpoena issued by the Ombudsman amid an ongoing investigation into the possible involvement of House members and employees in the flood control mess. 

Remulla said the House employee concerned served during the speakership of Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez from 2022 to 2025.

“I'm warning the Secretary General, do not do this again. We will cite you for contempt, and we will suspend you, if not remove you from office. Hindi kami papayag na balewalain nila ang Office of the Ombudsman,” Remulla added.

(We won’t let you get away with disregarding the authority of the Office of the Ombudsman.)

Remulla said the warning applies to all other subpoenas for the SALN of House members and other employees under investigation over the anomalous flood control projects.

“Ang problema nga kasi, yung Secretary General, pag hindi binigay ang SALN, ay parang sinasabi nila na hindi kayo puwedeng mag-file ng civil forfeiture cases. They're not going to frustrate the ends of justice,” Remulla said.

(The problem with the Secretary General, when they refuse to give us the SALN, is as if they are saying we government prosecutors won't be filing civil forfeiture cases.)

GMA News Online has reached out to Garafil for comment and will update this story as soon as she responds.

VP SALN

Meanwhile, Remulla said his office will deploy a staff to comply with the subpoena issued by the House committee on justice concerning his testimony and the submission of SALN of Vice President Sara Duterte for the impeachment hearing.

“Iyong custodian ng SALN ang magdadala. Not me personally,” Remulla said in a press conference.

(The SALN custodian will bring the SALNs.)

“Hindi naman ako ang may hawak niyan kundi yong [SALN custodian] officer. Siya ang magdadala kasi siya ang may personal knowledge sa bagay-bagay na kanilang hinihingi,” Remulla added.

(I am not the one who will do the SALN submission, but the SALN custodian officer. That officer is the one who has personal knowledge of the things that the House panel wants to find out.)

The House justice panel earlier sought the testimony of Remulla for the ongoing impeachment hearing against Duterte, specifically about her SALN, citing “the documents are sought for the committee to be apprised of the assets, liabilities and net worth declared by Vice President Sara Z. Duterte from the time she started public service until the present.” 

The House subpoena on Remulla also stated that Remulla will have the right to be accompanied by a legal counsel during the proceedings. However, the said counsel “will be limited to an advisory role and will not be permitted to speak or otherwise participate in the proceedings.”

There are two pending impeachment complaints against the Vice President: One, the complaint filed by Father Joel Saballa and others and endorsed by House Senior Deputy Minority Leader and Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Leila de Lima and two, the complaint filed by lawyer Nathaniel Cabrera endorsed by Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. and Deputy Speaker Paolo Ortega V of La Union.

The two impeachment complaints accuse Duterte of committing betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, among others, over the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds; threatening to kill President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and his family; and the alleged accumulation of unexplained wealth.

The House committee on justice had found these complaints sufficient in form, substance and in grounds.

The House justice panel is in the process of determining whether there is probable cause to impeach the Vice President. —LDF, GMA News