VP Sara won't get advance questions for probe – NBI chief
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte will not be provided with a list of questions to be asked during the investigation into her "assassination" remark against the Marcoses and the House Speaker, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Jaime Santiago said.
In an interview with DZBB on Sunday, December 1, Santiago said the agency plans to question the vice president about the individual she allegedly hired to kill Marcos, should an alleged plot against her succeed, as well as details regarding the supposed threat to her life.
“Ay hindi kami nagbibigay talaga ng questions. 'Yung few questions na ‘yun, alam naman niya na ‘yun ang itatanong—bakit nasabi na nakapagbanta siya nang ganun, bakit may kinausap siyang tao, ‘yun ‘yung usual. Pero ‘yung other questions pa ay hindi na namin maibibigay,” Santiago said.
(We really don’t provide questions. Those few questions, she already knows those will be asked—why she made such a threatening statement, why she talked to someone, those are the usual ones. But as for the other questions, we can no longer provide those.)
On November 29, Duterte asked the NBI to provide her with their questions in advance before she faces a probe concerning her remarks ordering a hitman to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Marcos and House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she is assassinated.
Santiago also stated that Duterte’s cooperation in the investigation would help the NBI gather more details about the alleged threats against both her and President Marcos, whom the agency is responsible for protecting.
“Yun namang threat niya kay Presidente BBM…considered namin nag-waive siya sa right niya na ma-express ang kanyang reason, justification, whatever, bakit siya nag-threat kay presidente, First Lady, at Speaker of the House,” he said.
(Her threat against President BBM is being considered as her waiving her right to explain her reasons, justification, or whatever prompted her to make such a threat against the president, the First Lady and the Speaker of the House.)
Duterte made the ”assassination” remarks in a virtual press conference on November 23, after the House of Representatives Quad Committee ordered the transfer of Office of the Vice President (OVP) Chief of Staff Zuleika Lopez from House detention to the Women’s Correctional Prison in Mandaluyong.
Lopez was cited in contempt for attempting to block the release of the Commission on Audit reports concerning the alleged misuse of OVP’s public funds.
Duterte, however, insisted that her remarks were not “threats” in response to the National Security Council’s statement calling her pronouncement against the president a “threat to national security.”
The NBI then issued a subpoena against Duterte on November 26, to “shed light” on the alleged grave threats and possible violations of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020.
Duterte was initially set to face the NBI on November 29 to explain her statement about ordering the killing of the Marcoses and Romualdez in the event of her death.
However, her camp requested to postpone the hearing, which has now been rescheduled to December 11 to allow her more time to prepare.
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