Sparks may fly too at House probe on NBP drug trade on Sept. 20

FOLLOWING the Senate investigation into the alleged extrajudicial killings by the Davao Death Squad on Thursday, another spectacle is underway at the House of Representatives.

The House of Representatives has scheduled its investigation in aid of legislation on the alleged New Bilibid Prison (NBP) drug trade on Tuesday, Sept. 20.

The committee meeting was released by the office of Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez just hours after the Senate conducted an inquiry on extrajudicial killings which heard the testimony of self-confessed Davao Death Squad (DDS) hitman Edgar Matobato.
READ: SUMMARY: Allegations of ‘DDS’ member in Senate hearing

Matobato had testified that President Rodrigo Duterte, when he was Davao city mayor, ordered the DDS to kill his critics and rivals aside from criminals.

The House investigation into the alleged prison drug trade was prompted by Alvarez’ House Resolution 105. It seeks to look into the proliferation of drug syndicates at the NBP during the term of De Lima as justice secretary.

READ: Duterte House allies turn tables on De Lima, eye probe

Duterte had tagged De Lima in a drug matrix and accused her of earning from the Bilibid drug trade, an allegation De Lima had denied.

READ: Duterte matrix out; tags De Lima, ex-Pangasinan gov, others | De Lima calls matrix linking her to drugs trade ‘rubbish’

Alvarez, the Davao Del Norte congressman and a close ally of Duterte, had said witnesses would be invited to implicate De Lima in the drug trade, including De Lima’s purported lover Ronnie Dayan who Duterte accused of collecting drug money for De Lima.

Alvarez said, however, that the House probe does not intend to single out De Lima, who refused to attend the probe.

The inquiry in aid of legislation would take place at the Ramon V. Mitra building at 9:30 a.m. next week Tuesday before the House justice committee.

READ: DOJ witnesses vs De Lima invited to House drug probe–Alvarez | De Lima’s driver star witness in House inquiry