Press Release
August 3, 2018

Dispatch from Crame No. 353:
Sen. Leila M. de Lima's Statement on Malacañang's Dismissal of Overall Deputy Ombudsman Carandang

8/3/18

The dismissal of Overall Deputy Ombudsman Carandang by Malacañang tells us several things.

First, Duterte has no respect for the law. The Supreme Court already ruled that the President has no disciplinary power over the Ombudsman deputies. Duterte does not care about this.

Second, Duterte is telling incoming Ombudsman Martirez that he is better off not to question Malacañang's usurpation of the Ombudsman's disciplinary authority over his Deputies.

Third, Duterte will stop at nothing to prevent the world from finding out the true extent of his hidden wealth and that of his family, amassed through years of corruption and illegal activities, including the drawing of public funds for ghost employees and other questionable City Hall expenses as flagged by the COA.

Fourth, Duterte's action exemplifies how impunity is running this government, and how closer to a dictatorship we have become, ensuring the impotence of independent investigative bodies like the Office of the Ombudsman, unless Martirez does the right thing and stands up to Malacañang's challenge.

Lastly, Duterte is deathly afraid of being exposed as the corrupt public official that he truly is, and will stop at nothing to go after Carandang or any other government investigator who dares to make him accountable to the people.

There will be no accountability for Duterte as long as he is in power. A government position to him is nothing but a platform for abuse and impunity. That is how he has always seen public office, whether as mayor or president.

News Latest News Feed