CAVITE 4th District Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Barzaga has complied with the House of Representatives’ ultimatum, taking down social media posts and photos containing lewd images and displays of wealth that led to his 60-day suspension.
The removal of the posts occurred on Tuesday evening, within 24 hours of the House adopting the committee on ethics and privileges’ recommendation to suspend the lawmaker. Photos previously uploaded by Barzaga on his Facebook account are no longer accessible.
The House ethics committee report, which served as the basis for Barzaga’s suspension, cited 24 Facebook posts as evidence of conduct “unbefitting of a House member.” The report included hyperlinks to these posts, which now redirect to broken or unavailable pages.
During Monday’s session, 249 House lawmakers voted in favor of adopting the committee’s recommendations, resulting in Barzaga’s suspension. Only five lawmakers voted against the suspension, with 11 abstaining.
Committee on ethics chairperson and 4Ps party-list Rep. JC Abalos stated that Barzaga’s actions and social media content were deemed inappropriate for a member of the House of Representatives. The suspension serves as a reminder of the ethical standards expected of public officials and the consequences of violating those standards.
