Vice President Sara Duterte on Saturday, Nov. 23, lamented that no one helped them after her chief-of-staff, Office of the Vice President (OVP) Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez, collapsed amid an order by the House good government committee to transfer her to the Women’s Correctional Facility.
OVP Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez is carried out on a stretcher after she collapsed in the House of Representatives while in detention. (Screenshot from contributed video)
In a media interview at the Veteran’s Memorial Hospital, the official recalled how Lopez vomited repeatedly and how no one assisted them.
“Humingi kami ng tulong, walang tumulong sa amin doon. Kasi hindi namin alam gagawin namin (We asked for help, no one helped us there. We didn’t know what to do),” she said.
Lopez was later put on a stretcher and brought from the House’s custodial facility, where she was detained after the Nov. 21 committee hearing on the OVP’s disbursement of confidential funds, to the Veteran’s Memorial Hospital via a Philippine National Police (PNP) ambulance.
Duterte, who had been staying at Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte’s office at the House of Representatives, to purportedly be close to Lopez and be able to visit her, was seen riding the ambulance with Lopez.
“We did know if it was a heart attack. Hindi namin alam ano nangyayari sa kanya (We didn’t know what was happening to her),” she said when asked about her aide’s condition while being rushed to the hospital.
The Vice President shared that Lopez has no next-of-kin here but that her mother asked her to take care of her daughter.
Lopez was later transferred to St. Luke's Medical Center in Quezon City.
Visibly angry, the official addressed House Speaker Martin Romualdez, whom she identified as the one behind these attacks against her and her staff.
“We really plan to file cases,” she said, “Kung ano man ‘yung (hospital) charges, ikaw, Martin Romuladez, ‘kaw ang magbayad nito lahat. Pag namatay ito, ‘kaw magbayad lahat (Whatever the charges will be, it’s you, Martin Romualdez, you will pay for all of these. If she dies, you will pay for everything).”
“Nag-iisip ako kung sino tatawagan ko para tumulong sa kanya kasi ang galit naman nila na sa akin lang, di ba? Wala siguro naman silang galit kay Usec. Lopez (I was thinking who to call to help her because they’re only angry at me, right? I don’t think they hold grudges against Usec. Lopez),” she added.
An earlier press conference showed an emotional Lopez who said the order by the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability to transfer her to the women’s correctional was a threat to her life.
The House panel held a special meeting on Friday, Nov. 22, where lawmakers unanimously agreed to the transfer.
Lopez was cited in contempt last Nov. 21 for “undue interference” after she admitted asking the Commission on Audit (COA) not to comply with the House’s subpoena on audit reports on the OVP’s liquidation documents regarding the confidential funds.
The panel is likewise looking into the disbursement of confidential funds at the Department of Education (DepEd) when Duterte was still its secretary.