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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Cabinet has no power to save someone linked to anomalies—Palace

Cabinet has no power to save someone linked to anomalies—Palace

Published Jun 4, 2026 05:26 pm
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro (Betheena Unite)
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro (Betheena Unite)
Malacañang has refuted claims that some Cabinet members offered to help Senator Jinggoy Estrada avoid legal charges against him, saying the Cabinet has no such power.
"Unang-una, ano po ba ang kapangyarihan ng mga miyembro ng gabinete na mangako sa isang tao na diumanong sangkot sa anomalya na sasabihin, wala ka nang kaso. Wala silang karapatan. Wala silang kapangyarihan (First of all, what authority do members of the Cabinet have to promise someone allegedly involved in an anomaly that they will no longer face any case? They have no right to do that. They have no power to do so)," Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said in an interview on Thursday afternoon, June 4.
The Palace official underscored that the authority to dismiss or pursue a case rests with the Office of the Ombudsman or the Department of Justice (DOJ).
"So nasa Office of the Ombudsman ang pagre-rekomenda kung idi-dismiss ang kaso o isasampa ang kaso. Walang kinalaman dun ang gabinete (So, it is the Office of the Ombudsman that recommends whether a case should be dismissed or filed. The Cabinet has nothing to do with that)," Castro stressed.
Castro lamented that this is just one of the mudslinging efforts against the administration.
"Ang mahirap po kasi ngayon, mas marami ang paninira. Kumbaga sa paninira na lamang sila kumakapit para iangat ang sarili nila (What is difficult nowadays is that there is so much mudslinging. It seems that they rely solely on attacking and discrediting others in order to elevate themselves)," Castro added.
Estrada was arrested on June 1 over a plunder case on alleged illegal budget insertions and more than P573 million in purported kickbacks linked to Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) infrastructure and flood-control projects under the Fiscal Year 2025 budget.

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