Chua says he has info that VP Duterte’s chief of staff is now in PH

Vice President Sara Duterte composite image from Inquirer file photos

MANILA, Philippines — While he is unsure if Vice President Sara Duterte’s chief of staff Zuleika Lopez will attend the House probe into the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) fund utilization, Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua said he got information that Lopez is now in the Philippines.

Lopez was among the OVP officials invited to shed light on fund use issues surrounding the OVP. The next hearing of the House committee on good government and public accountability is on Wednesday, November 20.

Chua, chairperson of the good government and public accountability panel, said in a press briefing on Tuesday that it appears that Lopez has returned from her foreign trip.

“So far, she has not sent out any feelers but we got information that Atty. Zuleika Lopez arrived in the Philippines yesterday,” Chua said in Filipino. “So hopefully she can attend the hearing.”

Lopez was supposed to be one of the OVP officials cited for contempt during the committee’s hearing last November 11 as they failed to show up after several invites.

Lawmakers, however, granted Lopez’s request to be excused from the November 11 hearing as her sick aunt in the United States requested her to be by her side.

READ: Sara Duterte’s chief of staff given last chance to skip House probe

According to Chua, he and other members of the committee would study the next course of action regarding Lopez, which he said would depend largely on the OVP official’s actions.

“We will study our next actions, that depends on what would happen tomorrow, on her attendance, and we will discuss of course, first, about her receipt of our subpoena,” Chua explained in Filipino.

Deputy Speaker David Suarez, who moved to cite four OVP officials for contempt, said he agrees with Santa Rosa City Rep. Dan Fernandez’s belief that Lopez’s presence and testimony would be crucial to the investigation.

Suarez also said extending some understanding to Lopez would not hurt.

Suarez, however, stressed that the consideration of Lopez’s absence would last only until before the next House committee hearing.

“I am a reasonable person, but of course there are limits. But if an individual is facing a reason that she cannot avoid for now, maybe she would no longer have any reason why she would not attend the next hearing,” Suarez said.

This is not the first time that Lopez and other OVP officials were mentioned during the committee hearings.

Last September 25, former education official Gloria Jumamil Mercado testified that envelopes containing money — supposedly from Duterte, who used to be the Department of Education (DepEd) chief in a concurrent capacity — may have been meant to influence her.

Mercado used to lead DepEd’s procurement division.

According to Mercado, the cash envelopes were handed to her by DepEd Assistant Secretary Sunshine Fajarda.

Mercado also said that Lopez asked her to resign from office after she raised several concerns regarding the agency’s procurement under its computerization program.

READ: Alleged ‘envelopes’ from Duterte may have aimed to influence ex-DepEd Usec

Duterte dismissed Mercado’s statements, saying the former DepEd undersecretary was just a disgruntled employee who made unauthorized solicitations of money from private companies. Mercado disputed Duterte’s accusations against her.

READ: VP Duterte: Mercado ‘disgruntled’ ex-employee who solicited P16M

The House has been investigating allegations of public fund misuse in the OVP and the DepEd under Duterte, including supposed irregularities in confidential fund (CF) expenditures.

The COA issued a notice of disallowance on P73.2 million of the OVP’s P125-million confidential fund (CF) for 2022 — an item which several lawmakers said should not be available in the first place, as the original budget crafted during the time of former Vice President Leni Robredo did not have this item.

READ: Sara Duterte’s confidential fund spending raises new, more doubts 

Regarding DepEd, there have been questions about the low number of classrooms constructed while Duterte was education secretary. Eventually, it was revealed that the DepEd under Duterte supposedly made it seem that their CFs were used for a youth training program when it was the Armed Forces of the Philippines and local government units that shouldered the expenses.

READ: DepEd under Duterte makes it seem it’s funding AFP training – solon