Duterte to take Lopez case to court

(UPDATE) VICE President Sara Duterte on Monday questioned the detention of her chief of staff Zuleika Lopez and said she would take the case to court. In its hearing on Monday, the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability extended Lopez's period of detention for another five days after it cited her for contempt. "You need to reconsider that extension of your detention. It was illegal in the first place," Duterte said during the hearing. Antipolo 2nd District Rep. Romeo Acop said "if you have any question insofar as the actions of this committee are concerned, I think the proper remedy is for you to go to the court." Vice President Sara Duterte answers lawmakers during the hearing conducted by theCommittee on Good Government and Public Accountability on Nov. 25, 2024, at the House of Representatives. PHOTO BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE "I will go to court," Duterte said. "But every day, you are depriving a person of her liberty while I await." The committee had cited Lopez in contempt last week and detained her for five days. ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro moved to extend the period of detention "in view of what happened during the last two days or so." Lopez had said that persons "barged into" her detention room late Friday night and that she was forced to turn her phone over. "I hope it is clear in our discussion this morning that the service of the transfer order was... calm. There was no barging in that happened," House Assistant Majority Leader and Nueva Ecija 1st District Rep. Mikaela Angela Suansing said during Monday's hearing, in which video footage was shown. Lopez, who was confined at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC), was not at the hearing on Monday. She was to be transferred from the House to a women's correctional facility, but on Saturday, she had a medical emergency. House Secretary General Reginald Velasco said on Sunday that for "humanitarian reasons and to safeguard her well-being," he had ordered that Lopez stay at the VMMC instead of transferring her to the women's correctional facility. Velasco said that the actions of the House were in line with established protocol and due process. "Detainees and their companions are subject to specific time limits for phone usage as part of security protocols. Attorney Lopez and her companion voluntarily surrendered their phones after being politely informed that their time had ended," he said on Sunday. "The House strictly follows due process and established protocols to safeguard the rights and safety of all detainees," he said. The committee is looking into confidential fund use of the Office of the Vice President from 2022 to 2023. It was also looking into confidential funds used by the Department of Education when Duterte was its secretary. On Nov. 20, the committee cited Lopez in contempt. The motion to cite her in contempt, made by Castro, stemmed from a letter to the Commission on Audit. The letter stated the position that the subpoena to produce documents should not be complied with for reasons stated in the letter. Lopez apologized and Castro accepted her apology but also pointed to Lopez's "evasive" answers during the committee's hearing and stood by her motion.