Replace Duque? Palace says Duterte to evaluate Senate findings on PhilHealth

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / JOAN BONDOC

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has “professional competence” to evaluate the probe findings of the Senate regarding the alleged corruption in the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), Malacañang said Monday.

During a Palace briefing, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the President has yet to read the report of the Senate Committee of the Whole, which recommended the removal and the filing of criminal charges against Health Secretary Francisco Duque III over his alleged involvement in the “illegal” release of billions of funds under the agency’s emergency cash advance measure.

“Si Presidente po hindi pa rin nakikita ang Senate report so bigyan naman po natin ng pagkakataon na mabasa ang Senate report. Tignan natin kung meron naman po talagang basehan bakit naman po hindi magbabago ang isip ng Presidente? Dahil abogado naman po ang Presidente, naging piskal pa nga so alam niya ang rules of evidence,” Roque said.

(The President has yet to see the Senate report so let’s give it some time for him to read the Senate report. Let’s wait and see if there would be basis, are there aspect that would change the mind of the President? Because the President is a lawyer, and also became a fiscal, he knows the rules of evidence.)

“Siya na po ang makaka-desisyon kung kapanipaniwala o hindi ang konklusyon ng Senado o hindi. All I can say is rest assured, meron pong professional competence ang ating Presidente to evaluate the evidence for himself,” he added.

(He will have to decide if the conclusion of the Senate is believable or not. Our President has the professional competence to evaluate the evidence.)

This, after Duterte’s spokesman was asked regarding the recent pronouncement of Senate President Vicente Sotto III, who said the President may change his mind about keeping Duque as his health secretary once he reads the committee report.

“Our findings were very obvious,” Sotto, who led the Senate hearings, said in a radio interview.

“It’s impossible that he did not know (about the fraudulent schemes)… He’s the chairman of the (PhilHealth) board, which governs (the state insurer). It’s clear what ‘governs’ mean. Everything is under his control since he’s also the secretary of health,” he added.

Duque, who vowed to clear his name, has since dismissed the committee’s findings as “baseless” that were made on “mere allegations alone.”