President Rodrigo Roa Duterte once again criticized the Senate blue ribbon committee amid its investigation on the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Itong sa Blue Ribbon Committee, sa totoo lang, ang ginagawa sa administration is really politicking. I don’t know, maybe we just achieved so much that the fight can no longer be done based on merits,” Duterte said in his taped weekly address aired on Wednesday morning.
"Did you see a good law that was able to help the country? What they are doing is politicking," he added.
Duterte also chided Senator Richard Gordon, the committee's chairman, calling him "adversarial."
"You cannot tell the truth in the Senate. Gordon is adversarial. Tingin sa 'yo, kalaban ka," he stated. "Anong totoo ang lalabas diyan?"
The President also described the congressional hearing on the procurement of allegedly overpriced medical supplies as a demolition job made by the senators.
“Ewan ko ba, baka wala na silang ma display na magawa nila kaya naghanap na lang ng ikagagalit ng tao sa akin. Sa Pilipino, itong maiwan ko sa inyo, bababa rin ako. Matatapos rin ako balang araw. I will not be there for the longest time,” he said.
“Ang mahirap sa Senado, you cannot tell the truth in the Senate. You know why? Because they would not allow you to complete your answer. Yung kalahati lang, sabak agad. Maputol ka na,” Duterte continued.
On Tuesday, the panel recommended the issuance of a warrant of arrest against former presidential economic adviser Michael Yang for skipping two senate inquiries.
The Senate agreed to issue an arrest warrant against Yang after his alleged driver refused to receive the two subpoenas the Senate served at his leased residence in Narra Avenue, Forbes Park in connection with Pharmally Pharmaecuetical Corp., a small firm that bagged billions worth of government contracts for the procurement of PPEs.
