VP Sara ginagamit daw budget hearing sa ‘political persecution’

MANILA, Philippines — Ginagamit umano ni Vice President Sara Duterte ang budget hearing ng Office of the Vice President (OVP) sa Senado sa mga usaping political habang may mga katanungan ang mga senador na may kinalaman sa kanyang tanggapan.

Ayon kay Atty. Barry Gutierrez, dating spokesperson ni dating vice president Leni Robredo, sa budget hearing hearing sa Senado, nagtanong dito si Sen. Risa Hontiveros hinggil sa panukalang paglalaan ng ?10 milyon sa OVP para makabili ng mga libro na iniakda ni VP Sara.

Gayunman, sa halip na magpaliwanag at sagutin ang tanong, inililihis umano ni VP Sara ang tanong sa pamamagitan ng “politicking,” na anya’y hindi pangkaraniwan at nakakaalarma.

“I’ve been on both sides of budget hearings, both in Congress and as part of the executive branch, and it’s standard for representatives of executive agencies to answer questions about their proposed budgets. That’s the entire purpose of these hearings. It was surprising to see a simple question about what the ?10 million was meant to fund being turned into an argument about political harassment,” pahayag ni Gutierrez.

Ipinahiwatig ni Gutierez na ginagamit ni Duterte ang budget hearing bilang oportunidad na makapagbigay ng political persecution dahil wala na ito sa gabinete.

“During VP Leni’s term, a children’s book was published by a private author and publisher, with no OVP funds involved. In fact, the book’s proceeds were used to support public initiatives during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is a complete opposite of what we are seeing now,” dagdag pa ni Gutierrez.