Senators reject virtual attendance of suspended Rep. Teves
A SENATE committee rejected a virtual attendance by suspended Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo A. Teves, Jr. during its investigation on the assassination of Negros Oriental Governor Roel R. Degamo.
“The members of this committee unanimously agree not to allow the virtual presence of Congressman Teves,” said Senator Ronald M. Dela Rosa, chair of the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, citing legal implications with the taking of his oath.
“But the doors are not completely shut down to Cong. Teves. If he wants to come here physically, we will entertain,” he said.
Mr. Teves has been linked to the March 4 killing of Mr. Degamo and was recently charged with murder complaints over three killings in 2019.
“If a potential witness is abroad, he has to be sworn at the embassy or consulate and give his testimony there,” Senator Ana Theresia “Risa” N. Hontiveros-Baraquel said, noting that an embassy official should administer his oath.
The House of Representatives slapped a 60-day suspension on Mr. Teves for failing to report physically in Congress to explain his whereabouts and face accusations against him following the expiration of his travel clearance on March 9.
Senate Majority Leader Joel J. Villanueva said he received reports on sightings of Mr. Teves in South Korea.
“For two consecutive days, some friends of mine have seen him in South Korea in Lotte Hotel eating in a buffet,” Mr. Villanueva told the panel. “I asked if they are very sure if it is Congressman Teves indeed and according to them, and I spoke to four persons… (who) said he was there.”
Ms. Hontiveros urged the committee to confirm this with the Philippine Embassy in Seoul.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla told senators that his department will initiate court proceedings to declare Mr. Teves as a “terrorist” based on Republic Act 11749 or the Anti-Terror Law.
“His alleged acts involving multiple murder and the fashion by which it was carried out including the recruitment of gunmen and use of high-powered firearms certainly falls within the coverage of the Anti-Terror Law,” Department of Justice spokesman Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV said in a Viber chat.
In a virtual news briefing, Mr. Teves told reporters, “It’s becoming a circus.”
“The investigation should’ve been done first before their judgment,” he added.
He declined to comment on Mr. Villanueva’s information on his whereabouts.
Mr. Teves added, “I’ll go home when I feel safe.”
NUISANCE CANDIDATES
Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) called on Congress to amend the election code to criminalize nuisance candidates, citing how one such case was involved in the 2022 elections for the governor’s post in Negros Oriental.
“During the 2022 elections, there were 205 nuisance candidacies filed and for local, 100 candidacies,” Comelec Chairman George Erwin M. Garcia told the panel. “These get printed in ballots and naturally, many of our countrymen get confused.”
Mr. Degamo filed a petition on October 13, 2021 to declare his almost namesake “Ruel Degamo” a nuisance candidate.
Although the Comelec’s 2nd division in December 2021 ruled in Mr. Degamo’s favor, the Comelec En Banc was not able to release a ruling on the case before the printing of ballots in January with “Ruel Degamo” as one of the candidates.
Comelec’s en banc resolution dated Sept. 1, 2022 prompted the transfer of votes from the nuisance candidate Mr. Degamo to the late Mr. Degamo, voiding the win of Pryde Henry A. Teves — the brother of Rep. Teves — as governor.
Mr. Garcia added that there were campaign posters showing Mr. Degamo’s face but with the wrong spelling of his name and number in ballots. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
