Pampanga 3rd district Rep. Aurelio "Dong" Gonzales Jr. (left), Vice President Sara Duterte (Facebook)

House Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr. and Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. David “Jay-jay” Suarez has debunked Vice President Sara Duterte's claim that the implication of her family members to alleged mass drug importation was "politically-motivated".
 
“The truth of the matter is the probe started as early as early 2023, where the drug haul in Mexico, Pampanga was worth P3.6 billion. How can it be political? The VP was still in the Department of Education (DepEd) then,” Gonzales said in a joint statement Sunday, Aug. 18.
 
“It just so happened that the panel stumbled upon the intertwined relationships of alleged drug lords and those involved in the illegal POGOs (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations). And a whistleblower was willing to come out and spill the beans,” he noted. 
 
The whistle-blower that Gonzales was referring to was former Bureau of Customs (BOC) intelligence officer Jimmy Guban ,who made explosive allegations during the hearing of the so-called quad-committee (quad-comm) last Friday, Aug. 16. 

During the quad-comm testimony Guban linked Vice President Sara Duterte's husband, lawyer Manases "Mans" Carpio; and brother, Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte in the smuggling of billions worth of shabu hidden in magnetic lifters at the Manila International Container Port in 2018.  

'Nothing personal' 

Also tagged by Guban was Michael Yang, the Chinese national who served as economic adviser to family patriarch, former president Rodrigo Duterte. 

Suarez said in the same statement that the quad-comm had "nothing personal" against the Duterte family. "Trabaho lang (We're just doing our job)."
 
“Part of our mandate as legislators is to ferret out the truth. Should we shirk from our sworn duty only because the husband and brother of the VP are allegedly involved in the smuggling of illegal drugs?” he asked. 
 
“I don’t think we deserve the people’s vote and trust if all we should do is stop the investigation every time the name of a big personality comes up. The truth should always prevail no matter what. The people deserve no less,” stressed Suarez.
 
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“They don’t have to hide. They don’t have to make excuses by saying these are all distractions. Face Congress if you have nothing to hide. They can settle the issues once and for all if they make declarations under oath in Congress,” Suarez said. 

Gonzales said: “The most important thing here is the hearings are conducted in a very fair manner. No witch hunts. No prejudgments. No badgering of witnesses. And documents should match or bolster oral testimonies. And I think we did all that."
 
Referring to the names mentioned by Guban, the Cabalen said “Why can’t they just face Congress? We have already sent our invites. We will be very fair and they are also entitled to that – presumption of innocence until proven guilty." 

After the Aug. 16 hearing, Vice President Duterte assailed the House of Representatives and said that they attacks on her family stemmed from politics. She also questioned the timing behind it, as she noted that they only came out after her left her post as DepEd secretary last July 19.