Vice President Sara Duterte was a no-show again on Wednesday, Dec. 11, at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) which subpoenaed her to shed light on her publicly aired threat to kill President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and House Speaker Martin Romuladez if she, herself, is killed.
The Vice President did not appear last Nov. 29, the date of the first NBI subpoena, and requested a resetting.
Despite Duterte's non-appearance, NBI Director Jaime B. Santiago said the bureau will continue to invite witnesses.
"The last day ng investigation namin is this coming Friday (the last day of our investigation will be this Friday),” Santiago said.
“Expect our recommendation, our report to the DOJ (Department of Justice) by early January,” he added.
During a press briefing, Santiago said: "True to her words, hindi dumating ang ating Vice President (the Vice President did not appear),"
He recounted that the Vice President told journalists the other day she will not be attending her scheduled appearance before the NBI on Dec. 11 and instead will submit, through her lawyer, a letter denying the allegations.
The NBI is probing possible violation of Duterte of the Revised Penal Code and the Anti-Terrorism Law in connection with the threat.
Santiago lamented that what Duterte’s lawyer submitted was not an affidavit.
“There is no sworn statement, there is no counter-affidavit to speak of, na isinubmit si Vice President (that the Vice President submitted),” he said.
A portion of the letter reads:
“With respect, we must state the obvious that the Honorable Secretary of Justice is this office’s administrative superior, head of agency and the President’s alter-ego, while the Honorable Executive Secretary is the President’s chief alter-ago. Given these facts you will kindly understand our client’s prudence in her cooperation with your office, and her desistance from appearing at and giving any statement on 11 December 2024.
“That said, our client vehemently denies having made any threat constituting Grave Threats under Art. 282 of the Revised Penal Code in relation to Sec. 6, R.A. 10175, terrorism or any other punishable act under R.A. No. 11479, or any other crime. Since your office acknowledges that it has access to publicly available material on the internet, we are confident that the content and context of the entire press conferences subject matter of your investigation will bear this out.
“We are also confident that given your letter’s assurance that the threats to our client are also being investigated, the same attention and vigor are being devoted thereto, notwithstanding the absence of any directive from your superiors. After all, the threats to our client were publicly disclosed almost six (6) months ago, and as the Vice President, she is also among those mentioned in Sec. 5(g), R.A. No. 10867 the threats to whom fall within your good office’s investigative jurisdiction.”
Santiago said the NBI could not proceed with the investigation on the alleged claims of Duterte of threats against her life.
Santiago explained that the Vice President should cooperate "para malaman namin kung sino nag the-threat sa kanya. kasi wala naman specific (so we would know who threatened her because she did not provide specifics)."
“Wala siyang sinama na proof, kung ano ‘yung threat na yun (she did submit proof and what that threat is),” he said.
Santiago assured that “the investigation would be impartial.”
While the NBI has not yet submitted its report to the DOJ, Santiago said the bureau will keep its doors open to the Vice President if she decides to appear or submit documents concerning the allegations against her and the alleged threats against her.