ON Tuesday, the House Committee on Good Governance issued a renewed subpoena to seven officials from the Office of the Vice President (OVP) connected to alleged misuse of government funds under Vice President Sara Duterte.
This time, panel chair Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua cautioned the officials that harsher consequences would follow if they failed to appear for the ongoing investigation. “We are reissuing another subpoena with a stern warning: if they fail to attend again, we will impose a much heavier penalty,” Chua stated.
All seven officials were absent from Tuesday’s hearing. They include:
*OVP Chief of Staff Zuleika Lopez
*Assistant Chief of Staff and Bids and Awards Committee Chair Lemuel Ortonio
*Administrative and Financial Services Director Rosalynne Sanchez
*Special Disbursing Officer (SDO) Gina Acosta
*Chief Accountant Juleita Villadelrey
*Former Department of Education Assistant Secretary Sunshine Charry Fajarda
*SDO Edward Fajarda
During the hearing, it was revealed that Lopez had departed for Los Angeles, California, the previous night. The motion to reissue the subpoena was put forward by Abang Lingkod party-list Rep. Joseph Stephen Paduano and seconded by Deputy Speaker David Suarez.
Manila 6th District Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. appealed to the OVP officials to attend the hearing and address questions regarding the alleged mismanagement of OVP funds.
The panel also issued subpoenas to two additional OVP officials: Budget Division Chief Edelyn Rabago and Chief Administrative Officer Kelvin Gerome Teñido. Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong emphasized the importance of their testimonies for the investigation, noting that the committee had already invited them.
According to House committee secretary Sheryl Lagrosas, under House rules, witnesses may have up to two unexcused absences, during which they are expected to submit written statements explaining their reasons for not attending.