De Lima camp: 'Drug lord' in viral video is a congressman

MANILA, Philippines – The Office of Sen. Leila De Lima has denied that she is with a drug lord in a viral video circulating on social media.

A video of De Lima singing Imelda Papin’s “Bakit" circulated online over the weekend. In the video, the senator was seen seated with a man wearing sunglasses, whom some netizens summarily dentified as high profile inmate Herbert Colangco.

The video was uploaded by several netizens and was edited with a voiceover saying:  “Ayan po, ang protektor ng drug lord, kasama niya si Herbert Colangco.”

De Lima’s staff said that the video of her singing was not taken at a birthday party for Colangco at the New Bilibid Prisons. They clarified that the senator was singing at her own birthday party at the Department of Justice Quadrangle on August 2015 and the man claimed to be Colangco was Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas.

Colangco alias “Ampang” was identified by President Rodrigo Duterte as one of the alleged drug bigwigs and who allegedly has links with the Parojinog drug syndicate and Kuratong Baleleng.

The office of De Lima said others who attended the party were emcee Imelda Papin and Undersecretary Jovy Salazar as well as DOJ employees. 

“Another maliciously circulated photo in Facebook claims Senator de Lima to be singing in a birthday party of a drug lord. Photo was actually taken during campaign supporter Zaldy Aquino's birthday concert in Zirkoh last December 28,” the statement read.

“This may be verified with the file videos and record of Zirkoh,” it added.

On June 11, De Lima said she will not be surprised if she will be accused of protecting drug lords after Solicitor General Jose Calida said he is looking into possible filing of cases against the senator over the alleged proliferation of illegal drugs during her term as Justice secretary. Calida said De Lima's plans to conduct a probe on the rise in drug-related deaths will stop the momentum of the police's actions against drugs.

Presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo had earlier said that De Lima has no basis to call for a probe on the deaths and that the call may have political motivations.

De Lima was chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights when it launched a probe into killings blamed on the so-called Davao Death Squad.