SMNI host Badoy says House detention arbitrary and illegal

FILE PHOTO: Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) host and former undersecretary Lorraine Badoy

MANILA, Philippines — Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) host and former undersecretary Lorraine Badoy has maintained that their detention at the House of Representatives complex was both arbitrary and illegal, as lawmakers supposedly abused their discretion.

During Wednesday’s episode of Laban Kasama ng Bayan — Badoy’s program which gained controversy for allegedly being used to spew lies and attacks — the former undersecretary also said it is clear that lawmakers released them from detention not out of pure intentions.

Badoy and co-host Jeffrey Celiz were cited for contempt for different reasons, but it occurred during the House committee on legislative franchises’ hearing on Celiz’s wrong claims about Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez having travel expenses worth P1.8 billion.

“Taos puso akong nagpapasalamat sa lahat ng lumaban para sa amin ni Eric nang kami ay madetine na illegally at arbitrarily ng Kongreso. Maliwanag sa amin ni Eric na hindi lang namin ipinaglalaban ang mga sarili kun’di mas mahalaga ang mahal nating Pilipinas,” Badoy said.

(I wholeheartedly thank all those who fought for me and Eric when we were illegally and arbitrarily detained by Congress. It is clear to me and Eric that we are not only fighting for ourselves but also, more importantly, for the country we love.)

“Maliwanag ako na hindi dahil sa mabubuti nilang puso ‘yong humanitarian reasons na dinadahilan nila, kung kaya kami pinakawalan ng Kongreso. Kun’di dahil naging mas maliwanag pa sa sinag ng araw ng watawat ng Pilipinas na wala silang karapatang patahimikin ang press at tanggalan ang karapatan namin,” she added.

(It is also clear that it is not because of their kind hearts that we were released on humanitarian grounds. The reason why we were released is clearer than the sun on the Philippine flag, it’s because they did not have the right to silence the press and remove our rights.)

According to Badoy, it seems that lawmakers — which she called abusive and arrogant — feared for the intervention that the Supreme Court (SC) may do.

Badoy and Celiz, while they were in detention, appealed to the SC their detention, contesting that the House had no authority to hold them.

READ: SMNI hosts Badoy, Celiz appeal their release before SC 

“Maliwanag din ako na natakot ang mga abusado at aroganteng Kongresista sa pinaka-mataas na hukom, ang Supreme Court, na ideklara nang maliwanag na kalabisan at pang-aabuso ang sinapit namin ni Eric sa mga kamay nila. Grave abuse of powers, oppression, at torment na nilabag nang walang pakundangan ng mga mambabatas na ito ng Pilipinas,” she claimed.

(It’s also clear that the abusive and arrogant lawmakers feared the possibility that the highest judge, the Supreme Court, would declare this as clearly an abuse of discretion, regarding what I and Eric went through. Grave abuse of powers, oppression, and torment which was violated by lawmakers of the Philippines.)

“Ang pinakamalakas na pwersa dito ay ang taumbayan at natakot ang mga abusado sa Kongreso — kasama dito ang CPP-NPA-NDF na nag-maneobra ng lahat ng ito,” she added, referring to the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People’s Army, and the National Democratic Front.

(The strongest force that scared abusive lawmakers, including the CPP-NPA-NDF which steered this issue, are the people.)

On Tuesday, House committee on legislative franchises chairperson and Parañaque 2nd District Rep. Gus Tambunting said that they are releasing Badoy and Celiz on humanitarian considerations.

Tambunting said that both SMNI hosts were apologetic over their actions before the committee.

Badoy’s detention came after she issued conflicting statements on the advertising revenues of their SMNI program ‘Laban Kasama ng Bayan.’

READ: Badoy cited for contempt during House hearing

Celiz, meanwhile, was cited for contempt after he refused to reveal his source of information on Romualdez’ alleged P1.8 billion travel expenses in one year.

Celiz said that a source told him that Romualdez spent P1.8 billion for trips, but House Secretary General Reginald Velasco clarified that the total travel cost for House members and their staff from January 2023 to October 2023 was at P39.6 million.

Tambunting said Celiz complied with their request to name the source, which Celiz said was a government worker in the Senate. According to Tambunting, they have confirmed that the source is an actual person, adding that they have coordinated with Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri.

Tambunting said that while Badoy and Celiz have been released, the hearings on the SMNI issue have not ended yet, adding that they hope to resume discussions by the second or third week of January.

As of now, there have been several proposed measures filed asking for the suspension of SMNI’s franchise or its outright revocation, due the claims issued by Celiz.  On Wednesday, 1-Rider party-list Rep. Ramon Rodrigo Gutierrez filed a bill seeking to revoke the franchise given to Swara Sug Media Corporation or SMNI.