Malacañang on Wednesday rejected claims that the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is weaponizing the law against members of the Senate majority bloc, following reports that several lawmakers are facing imminent legal battles.
The defense from the executive branch comes after the Office of the Ombudsman announced it will file plunder charges against Senator Jinggoy Estrada on Thursday.
The anti-graft body also indicated that a similar complaint against Senator Joel Villanueva is “ripe” for filing, and successfully secured a precautionary hold departure order against Senator Rodante Marcoleta regarding a separate plunder case.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the President’s state visit to Japan, Communications Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro clarified that the controversies surrounding the lawmakers predate the creation of the current 13-member Senate majority alliance.
”Ang mga issue sa kanila, hindi pa po nagkakaroon ng majority of 13, ito po ay na-issue na, (The issues against them already existed even before the majority of 13 was formed),” Castro said.
Addressing the case of Marcoleta, Castro emphasized that the investigation stemmed from the lawmaker’s own public disclosures regarding his campaign finances, specifically his failure to declare certain contributors in his Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE).
“Katulad po nung kay Sen. Marcoleta, ito naman po ay sa kanya mismo nanggaling, sa kanya mismo ang admission na hindi niya inilagay sa SOCE (Statement of Contributions and Expenditures) niya yung mga donors niya, nagkakahalaga ng ₱75 million, (Just like in the case of Sen. Marcoleta, this came from him, it was his own admission that he did not include his donors in his SOCE, amounting to ₱75 million),” Castro explained during the press briefing.
”Hindi ito nanggaling sa administrasyon at si Senator Marcoleta mismo ang nagbigay ng impormasyon kung sino-sino ba ang kanyang mga donors. Ang isa sa pinangalanan niya ay si Mike Defensor. So, hindi ito issue na ang administrasyon ang nagpupukol. (This did not come from the administration and Senator Marcoleta himself provided the information on who his donors were. One of those he named was Mike Defensor. So, this is not an issue being hurled by the administration.)“
Castro maintained a similar stance regarding Estrada’s upcoming graft case, reiterating that the allegations are not politically motivated or tied to current upper chamber dynamics.
”Ang patungkol naman po kay Sen. Jinggoy, still hindi pa naman po nabubuo yung 13 na majority noong ito ay naipupukol sa kanila, hindi lamang sa kanya, (Regarding Sen. Jinggoy, the majority of 13 had still not been formed when these allegations were thrown at them, not just at him),” she noted.
The Palace official concluded by assuring the public that Malacañang maintains a strict hands-off policy regarding independent investigations conducted by the anti-graft court.
“Sila mismo ang nagbigay ng mga impormasyon patungkol po dito. At kung may pag-iimbestigahang gagawin ng Ombudsman, ito po ay hindi paghihimasukan ng administrasyon, (They themselves provided the information regarding this. And if there is an investigation to be conducted by the Ombudsman, the administration will not interfere in it),” Castro added.
“Marami po dito ang nabibigay ng mga issues. So hindi po ito dapat maiugnay sa administrasyon dahil ito po ay matagal ng issue bago pa po nagkaroon ng 13 na miyembro na majority. (Many issues are being brought up here. So this should not be linked to the administration because this has been a long-standing issue before the 13-member majority even existed.)”