Nueva Ecija 1st district Rep. Mikaela Angela Suansing (left), Vice President Sara Duterte (Facebook)

A Nueva Ecija congresswoman who graduated from Harvard University doesn't think much.of Vice President Sara Duterte's retort to the House of Representatives regarding the drug smuggling allegations against her family. 

Vice President Duterte had branded as "politically-motivated" the accusations linking her husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio; and her brother, Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte to a 2018 illegal drug shipment. 

In a press conference Tuesday, Aug. 20,  Nueva Ecija 1st district Rep. Mikaela Angela “Mika” Suansing said: "It's the easiest way out to say that it's politically-motivated." 

Suansing, who earned a Masters degree in Public Policy in 2022 at Harvard University in the United States (US), says the ongoing investigation by the House quad-committee (quad-comm) is driven by evidence and the need to address the country’s drug problem--and not by politics. 

“It's just easy to dismiss allegations saying na all of those attacks, all of those investigations are politically motivated, but they’re not. I think in all of the hearings nakita po natin na may mga ebidensya (we've seen that there is evidence),” pointed out the Ivy Leaguer. 

The allegation against the Duterte family members were raised by ex-Bureau of Customs (BOC) intelligence officer Jimmy Guban during a quad-comm hearing last Aug. 16. Suffice it to say that Guban caused quite a stir. 

Suansing added: “Meron na pong mga salaysay, mga under oath na mga salaysay na medyo nagkakaroon na po tayo ng direksyon patungkol po doon sa sino’yung mga personalidad na kailangang tingnan." 

(There have been testimonies taken under oath that have given us direction as to which personalities need to be looked into.) 

"So this is not politically-motivated, this is fueled by the need to really address the prevalent drug syndicates in the country, the prevalence of drugs in the country,” she further clarified.