16-11-2023 (MANILA) Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office has taken a significant step in the legal proceedings against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. A subpoena was issued on Monday by Quezon City Senior Assistant City Prosecutor Ulric Badiola, summoning Duterte to appear for a preliminary investigation on December 4 and December 11. This marks the initiation of the first criminal complaint against Duterte following his presidency.
The complaint has been filed by ACT-Teachers party-list Representative France Castro, accusing Duterte of grave threats. Badiola, overseeing the case, invoked Article 282 of the Revised Penal Code in connection with Section 6 of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
In the subpoena, Duterte is directed to submit his counter-affidavit, along with the affidavits of his witnesses and supporting documents. Badiola made it clear that no motions to dismiss would be entertained, emphasizing that only counter-affidavits would be admitted. Postponements would only be granted under exceptionally meritorious grounds.
Badiola, in the one-page subpoena, stated, “Under and by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Revised Charter of Quezon City and other existing laws, respondent is hereby commanded to appear before the Office of the City Prosecutor, Justice Muñoz Palma Building (Department of Justice), Elliptical Road, Quezon City.”
The complainant, France Castro, alleges that Duterte issued grave threats during a television program on Sonshine Media Network International aired on October 11. In the program titled “Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa,” Duterte specifically targeted Castro, stating, “The first one to target with the intel funds is you, France, and other communists who I like to kill.”
Castro contends that this threat was directed at her, as Duterte had mentioned her full name earlier in the interview. She further claims that these attacks followed her scrutiny of confidential funds allocated to Duterte’s daughter, Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte.
The alleged unauthorized grant of confidential funds to Vice President Sara Duterte in 2022, amounting to around ₱125 million, was exposed by Castro and her colleagues in the progressive bloc. This exposure led to the House of Representatives’ decision to strip the Vice President of her requested ₱650 million confidential funds for 2024 for the agencies she leads, namely, the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education.
If found guilty of grave threats, Duterte could face a maximum of six years imprisonment and a fine of ₱100,000.
Subpoena Welcomed by Lawmakers
Two party-list lawmakers, including the complainant, France Castro, welcomed the issuance of the subpoena. In a statement, Castro expressed satisfaction with the progress of the case and hoped that Duterte would face the charges and participate in the preliminary investigation.
Kabataan party-list Representative Raoul Manuel stated that Duterte deserved to be summoned in court, noting that he aimed to intimidate lawmakers calling for the abolition of confidential funds and an end to their abuse by public officials.
Manuel emphasized that no portion of public funds should be shrouded in secrecy, and he maintained that no individual should be exempted from accountability.
House of Representatives Audit Findings
In a separate development, the House of Representatives has received clean audit findings from the Commission on Audit (COA) for the past six years. Contrary to Duterte’s claim that the institution is spared from scrutiny, the COA’s annual audit reports from 2017 to 2022 showed no adverse findings on the chamber’s use or disbursement of funds.
The COA’s 2022 Annual Audit Report on the House, uploaded on July 6, stated, “For CY (calendar year) 2022 and prior years, no Notice of Suspension, Notice of Disallowance, and Notice of Charge was issued.”
The COA also certified that the House did not receive any Priority Development Assistance Fund or Disbursement Acceleration Program Fund, known as the root of corruption in past Congresses.
Duterte, who served as President from June 30, 2016, to June 30, 2022, recently labeled the House as the “most rotten” government institution, accusing Speaker Martin Romualdez of having substantial discretionary funds or pork barrel for distribution to lawmakers.
