HOUSE prosecution spokesperson Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong on Thursday renewed his appeal for Vice President Sara Z. Duterte to participate in her own impeachment trial so the public can hear her side of the story.
After nine weeks of the impeachment trial, Alonto Adiong said that while many facts have been established about the allegations against the Vice President, many questions also remain unanswered.
Even if it is the right and prerogative of the Vice President, as the respondent , not to attend the trial, he said there are many questions that only Duterte can answer.
“Parati nating sinasabi, trial niya ito. At base sa mga naging testigo, yung mga inutusan niya na mag-violate na hindi sumunod sa Joint Circular, lahat sila sinasabi, hindi nila alam paano ginasta,” Alonto Adiong said.
“So, that leaves only one person to explain to the public saan napunta? Bakit yun ang utos niya? Saan napunta yung yung confidential funds na ito? Kasi kung walang utos galing sa kanya, hindi sana magkakaroon ng violation ng Joint Circular,” he added.
In their testimonies before the Senate Impeachment Court, Office of the Vice President (OVP) special disbursing officer Gina Acosta said she knew nothing about how the P500 million confidential funds of the office was spent.
Acosta said she released all the funds to Col. Raymund Dante Lachica, the former head of the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group (VPSPG) and that she relied completely on the latter’s reports to her for the liquidation of funds with the Commission on Audit (COA).
The assisyanr chief-of-staff of the OVP, Lemuel Ortonio, also testified that he was unaware of how the confidential funds were utilized by Lachica and that only the Vice President and Acosta would know the details.
Even former Department of Education (DepEd) undersecretary and spokesperson Atty. Michael Poa, who now serves as one of the lawyers of Duterte in the impeachment trial, testified that only the Vice President and the DepEd’s former special disbursing officer Edward Fajarda knew the details of how the P112.5 million in confidential funds of the Department were spent.
“So, I think it leaves us with no one to explain what happened to the confidential funds but the Vice President alone. So, I think as a matter of, yung sinasabi niyang ‘facing the right the forum’ and that wala siyang tinatago, inosente siya, the more reason for her to clear her name by coming out and explaining what happened to the confidential funds,” Alonto Adiong said.
“Saan napunta? Bakit ganito nagka-leche leche yung utilization. Nagka-letse letse ‘yung utilization report nila na hindi naman maipaliwanag yung dapat na mga tauhan na authorized to disperse these confidential funds: Gina Acosta, Mr. Ortonio and even Atty. Poa. Wala daw silang alam e. So, that leaves only the Vice President as the only person or official, accountable official to explain to the public kung saan napunta ang pera,” he added.
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