MANILA, Philippines – Ipapasa ng House committee on ethics and privileges ang mga rekomendasyon nito kung sususpendihin ba si Cavite Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Barzaga ng 60 pang araw o patatalsikin na sa opisina, ayon kay Manila Rep. Rolando Valeriano.
Ang pahayag ni Valeriano ay kasunod ng closed-door hearing sa kaso ni Barzaga.
Nagtapos na ang naunang 60 araw na suspensyon para kay Barzaga ngunit sinabi ni Valeriano na pinili ng mambabatas na huwag dumalo sa imbestigasyon.
“I hope that my request for another 60-day suspension will be approved by the committee. They promised to submit their recommendation to the plenary by tomorrow at 3 p.m. We will find out whether the 60-day suspension will push through or if expulsion is considered; we do not yet know what the Committee on Ethics will decide,” sinabi ni Valeriano.
“He was really absent; he deliberately chose not to attend because, I think, he posted something three or four days ago showing he intended to ignore the committee hearing,” dagdag pa niya.
Ipinaliwanag ni Valeriano na pinag-usapan ng panel ang patuloy na paglabag ni Barzaga sa House rules sa kabila ng ipinataw na 60 araw na suspensyon noong Disyembre.
Nauna nang inaprubahan ng Kamara ang mosyon para sa komite na muling imbestigahan si Barzaga.
Kasunod ito ng privilege speech ni Valeriano kaugnay sa pinakabagong mga social media post ni Barzaga partikular ang pag-atake niya sa mga miyembro ng National Unity Party (NUP) at kay yumaong Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop.
“One of the highlights was Cong. Acop’s death, which he maligns. We believe this is very un-Christian, not like the behavior of a Filipino, nor of an honorable person. And it’s not just an ethics matter—if you recall, I also filed a libel case, and not only me; I think 10 committee members filed libel cases against him.”
Bukod sa ethics complaint, naghain si Valeriano ng libel case laban kay Barzaga. RNT/JGC
