A CONTROLLED and restrained former President Rodrigo Duterte faced the House quad committee yesterday and was repeatedly warned to observe decorum if he does not want lawmakers to cite him in contempt and order his detention at the Batasang Pambansa complex.
“I’m afraid of you (quad comm) because he earlier said I’ll be cited in contempt. That means detention,” Duterte said in jest, referring to the warning of Rep. Joseph Stephen Paduano (PL, Abang Lingkod) during the committee’s hearing last week.
Duterte made the statement after former Manila Rep. Bienvendo Abante, a co-chair of the joint panel, reminded the former President that his lawyer, Martin Delgra III, had earlier told the panel that the former chief executive did not want to attend the hearing because he does not believe in its fairness.
Reacting to Duterte’s statement, an impassioned Paduano said he would not hesitate to move to cite the former chief executive in contempt if he does not respect the committee and the rules governing investigations in aid of legislation.
The usually foul-mouthed Duterte visibly tried to refrain from cursing for most part of the hearing, which he could not even avoid when he faced the Senate blue ribbon sub-committee hearing last October 28.
Duterte however momentarily lost his cool at around 7:15 p.m. when he silently cursed and acted as if he was going to hit former senator Antonio Trillanes IV with the microphone in front of him.
Trillanes, who was also a resource person in the hearing, was seated just three chairs away from the former president, whom he accused of keeping bank accounts where he allegedly received millions in drug money from a certain Sammy Uy.
The former senator, who had a power point presentation of the bank accounts which he first made public in 2017, said the former president even had a joint account with his daughter Vice President Sara Duterte, who was also in the hearing venue.
An incensed Duterte said he was willing to sign a waiver to allow the House panel to scrutinize the bank accounts and “if there is an iota of truth to it, I will ask my daughter to resign and hang myself in front of you.” He said he would sign the waiver on the condition that he will be allowed to slap Trillanes in the face with the document.
He later on apologized to the panel for losing his cool.
The former president was seated beside former Sen. Leila De Lima, who was jailed for almost seven years after being accused of involvement in illegal drugs by the Duterte administration.
De Lima slammed the allegations that she was the “mother of all drug lords” as stated in a news report quoting former NBI officials.
“Absolutely false. That is a fictitious, bogus, allegation against me,” she said. “They filed cases related to illegal drugs, initially consummated illegal drug trading, and amended it into a conspiracy to commit illegal trade. There were three cases filed against me, but I was acquitted for all three because I am not involved in illegal drugs, it was just mere propaganda.”
“This was just made up so that they will have a figure, a prominent figure — that is Senator De Lima in 2016, for her to be the center of attention of the country, of the world, that this woman is the mother of all drug lords, the Bilibid drug trade queen,” De Lima added.
NO CURSING
Before the start of the hearing shortly before 11 a.m., quad committee overall chair Surigao Del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers said that the joint panel will not tolerate profanities.
“We will stick with the quad comm rules at ipapahayag namin ‘yan (and we will announce it). Ang (The) ground rules dito (here), kasama diyan, ay ‘yung hindi pagmumura (part of it is not cursing),” Barbers said.
Abante, for his part, explicitly warned the former President that profanities will not be tolerated by the joint panel.
“Ang kahilingan lang po namin dito ay sana naman respetuhin po ninyo ang quad comm hearing na ito sa pamamagitan ng hindi paggamit ng mga vulgar words (Our wish is we hope you’ll respect the quad comm hearing by not using vulgar words,” Abante said.
Abante underscored his intent to maintain decorum, stating he would invoke a point of order if Duterte resorted to foul language during the proceedings.
“Kapag kayo po ay nagmura sa quad comm hearing na ito (If you curse during this hearing), I will make a point of order on you,” he said. “While we should be respectful, we cannot be deferential. We answer to a power greater than any president – we answer to the Filipino people and to God.”
Abante set a strong precedent for the inquiry into allegations related to the government’s anti-drug campaign, as he reminded the former president that the investigation is a solemn endeavor aimed at uncovering the truth.
“Our mission is to seek the truth, and we shall not be swayed from that path,” said the Baptist pastor, who said his Church supported and vote for the former president in 2016.
In his opening statement, Barbers assured Duterte that “our purpose here is to seek the truth, not to pass judgment.” “We are here not to judge but to listen, to understand the truth,” he said.
