Ombudsman: ‘Sorry, Mr. President, but this Office shall not be intimidated’

“Sorry, Mr. President, but this Office shall not be intimidated.”

This was the message of the Office of the Ombudsman in a strongly worded statement it issued on Friday amid pronouncements of President Rodrigo Duterte that he would form a body to investigate alleged corruption in the agency.

“The President’s announcement that he intends to create a commission to investigate the Ombudsman appears to have to do with this Office’s on-going investigation into issues that involve him. This Office, nonetheless, shall proceed with the probe, as mandated by the Constitution,” the Office of the Ombudsman said.

The anti-graft body also stood by its earlier statement that it possessed documents from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) pertaining to Mr. Duterte’s questionable bank transactions.

“If the President has nothing to hide, he has nothing to fear,” the Office of the Ombudsman said.

READ: Duterte threatens to form body to probe ‘corruption’ in Ombudsman

The Office of the Ombudsman maintained that it had and would always welcome efforts to cleanse it ranks.

“Its Internal Affairs Board has, in fact, entrapped and removed Ombudsman officials and employees for various offenses,” it noted.            /kga