President Duterte has banned his Cabinet officials, among others, from attending the investigations of the Senator Richard Gordon-chaired Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.
A memorandum dated Oct. 4, 2021 that was acquired by Manila Bulletin indicates that the President has directed all officials and employees of the executive department to no longer appear before the hearings of the Blue Ribbon panel, "effective immediately".
"Instead, they shall focus all their time and effort on the implementation of measures to address the current State of Calamity on account of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease), and in carrying out their other functions," it read.
Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea confirmed the authenticity of the single-page document Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 5.
In the latest "Talk to the People" public briefing that was aired late Monday night, Duterte was seen signing what he called a memorandum. He didn't mention anything about totally banning executive department workers from attending the marathon hearings of the Gordon-led panel, although his disdain for the proceedings has been clear as day.
"Given the manner that the inquiry has been conducted, and clear indication that the hearings are meant to go on indefinitely, it has become evident that the said hearings are conducted not in aid of legislation, but to identify persons to hold accountable for alleged irregularities already punishable under existing laws," the memo read.
It further said that the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee "has stepped into the mandates of other branches of government, and has deprived itself of the only basis to compel attendance to its hearings.
The Senate investigation began nearly two months ago on the topic of the alleged anomalies found in the Commission on Audit's (COA) 2020 audit report.
It has since shifted to scrutinizing the multi-billion peso deals entered by the government with Pharmally Pharmaceuticals, the upstart company that helped procure COVID-19 supplies for the county last year. Cabinet officials are usual guests in the hearings, which last for five to eight hours.
Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo, in a statement late Tuesday afternoon, justified the memorandum, saying it is "only logical for the government to call all hands on deck to adequately respond to the novel challenges spawned by this pandemic".
"As correctly stated in the memorandum of the Executive Secretary, the hearings of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee have been meandering to the point of practically preventing invited government officials from performing their functions and duties. Most notably, the Department of Health (DOH) has been precluded from its task of acting as the point guard of our COVID-19 response," he said.
Panelo noted that the Senate panel has yet to inform the people of the specific laws that it seeks to create, amend, or repeal in the course of the two-month hearings.
"Faced between the choice of (1) accommodating the whims and caprices of a senatorial despot - who would seek to make the world his stage until kingdom come - and (2) actually performing genuine public service that directly relates to the general welfare of the Filipino people, the choice is obvious," he further said.