Hontiveros slams bribery claims

MANILA, Philippines —  Sen. Risa Hontiveros yesterday refuted allegations online that she bribed a Senate witness to testify against detained former president Rodrigo Duterte, impeached Vice President Sara Duterte and alleged child rapist Apollo Quiboloy.

Calling the claims as lies, Hontiveros maintained that substantial documentation can support the integrity of testimonies heard at past Senate hearings.

“All witnesses presented during the Quiboloy Senate hearings freely and voluntarily offered their testimonies and the evidence they carried. There’s paper trail readily corroborated by multiple agencies and officials,” she said.

Michael Maurilio or alias “Rene,” a former witness, claimed that Hontiveros paid him and others to testify as part of an alleged plot to “take down” Quiboloy and seize his group’s properties.

Maurilio claimed that the senator was “threatening” him.

Maurilio’s video was uploaded on Facebook by an account named “Pagtanggol Valiente.”

The account’s profile photo features a clenched fist, a symbol associated with supporters of the Dutertes.

Only through Sen. Ronald dela Rosa’s sharing of the video did the post gain traction.

Dela Rosa recently came under fire for sharing misleading content generated by artificial intelligence.

Hontiveros warned that her office is preparing legal action, calling the video part of a wider campaign of harassment meant to derail pending criminal cases against Quiboloy.

“We have reason to believe that this individual has been coerced or paid off to derail the ongoing criminal proceedings against Quiboloy, and disturbingly, threaten my staff and the witnesses who spoke out against Quiboloy’s heinous crimes,” she said.