GMA suspended for 90 days

MANILA, Philippines - The Sandiganbayan has suspended Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for 90 days for the graft case she is facing in connection with the ZTE national broadband network (NBN) deal anomaly.

In a four-page directive dated June 26 but officially released only yesterday, the anti-graft court’s Fourth Division chaired by Associate Justice Gregory Ong ordered the former president to stop exercising her
functions as a lawmaker.

Though Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. was tasked to implement the suspension order, it was addressed directly to Arroyo, who is presently detained at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) for a separate plunder case before the Sandiganbayan First Division for her alleged role in the misuse of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) funds.

The former president was specifically ordered to “cease and desist from performing the duties of her office and availing of her privileges” as a member of the House of Representatives.

Belmonte said the suspension order has no practical effect since Arroyo was already detained.

“As to the legal effect (of the order), I’ll have to consult with my colleagues,” Belmonte said.

The former president’s husband Jose Miguel Arroyo described the suspension as “bothersome,” even as he questioned the timing of the release of the order.

“That suspension is not within the Sandiganbayan jurisdiction. From what I know, such matters are exclusively within the jurisdiction and prerogative of the House according its rules,” he said. – Paolo Romero