The House of Representatives won't "adjust" for the purpose of pleasing Vice President Sara Duterte, as far as Antipolo City 2nd Rep. Romeo Acop is concerned.
The Vice President is facing allegations of mismanaging millions worth of confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs) allocated to both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd), where she served as secretary for two years until her resignation last July.
House won't 'adjust' to VP Duterte, says Acop
At a glance
Antipolo City 2nd Rep. Romeo Acop (left), Vice President Sara Duterte (Facebook)
The House of Representatives won't "adjust" for the purpose of pleasing Vice President Sara Duterte, as far as Antipolo City 2nd Rep. Romeo Acop is concerned.
Acop joined the growing list of critics of Duterte’s demeanor during her press conference last Friday, Oct. 18 wherein she had a troubling display of anger, at least according to the former's House colleagues,.
“I think she is being overwhelmed by anger and hate. ‘Pag ang isang tao ay sobra-sobra ang galit, nawawala siya sa sense of decency, sa aking paningin," Acop, the vice chairman of the quad-committee (quad-comm), said on Monday, Oct. 21 during a press conference.
(In my view, if a person has too much anger inside him or her, then he or she loses a sense of decency.)
“How you manage ‘yung hate sa iyong katawan at ‘yung nasasaktan ka (the anger inside of you and your hurt feelings), it’s also a test of your character,” Acop pointed out.
The Vice President is facing allegations of mismanaging millions worth of confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs) allocated to both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd), where she served as secretary for two years until her resignation last July.
Acop took part in the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability's inquiry in aid of legislation on the CIF controversy last Oct. 17, or a day before Duterte’s presser.
Asked by a reporter Monday if the House would "adjust" or "take it easy" on the Vice President following her on-camera meltdown, Acop replied in the negative.
“Sa ganang amin (For us), the performance of one’s duty should be the primordial consideration. Trabaho po namin ‘yun eh (That is our job).
"And therefore dapat walang let up (there should be no let up) to show what really happened in so far as the confidential funds of the [OVP] and the [DepEd] when she was still the secretary,” he said.
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“‘Pag magbibigay kami ng leeway, hindi na po yata in accordance with our mandate. Ganoon po ang paningin namin doon,” noted Acop, who is a retired police brigadier general.
(If we're going to give leeway, then that doesn't seem in accordance with our mandate. That's is our view on it.)
When asked if he thinks Duterte’s behavior raised concerns about her mental well-being, Acop declined to make a direct assessment and insteead suggested that professionals should weigh in on the matter.
“I think we are not in a position to determine that. Siguro (Maybe), it could be recommended that she consult a psychologist or psychiatrist kasi sila po ang expert dito, hindi po kami (they are the experts here, not us),” Acop said.