Alvarez insists House may still issue arrest order vs. De Lima

House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on Wednesday said the House of Representatives may still issue an arrest warrant against Sen. Leila de Lima despite an agreement with the Senate leadership.

In an interview on Unang Balita, Alvarez said that he may order the arrest of De Lima if the House justice committee would recommend it.

"Aantayin po kung ano ang rekomendasyon ng Committee on Justice. I cannot act alone. Titignan ko kung ano man ang mapagkasunduan nila doon. Aakyat sa akin 'yan if they request for the issuance of warrant of arrest, baka i-issue natin. Kaya lang, iwe-weigh natin 'yung mga options,” he said.

Alvarez issued the statement after a prior agreement with the Senate leadership that the House of Representatives will not issue an arrest warrant against De Lima should she snub the show cause order issued by the House justice committee.

Agreement

Sen. Vicente Sotto III said on Tuesday that the agreement was reached during a meeting attended by Alvarez and Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III

Sotto said he and Senators Panfilo Lacson and Gringo Honasan and Ilocos Norte 1st District Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas and Oriental Mindoro 2nd District Rep. Reynaldo Umali were also in the meeting.

Sotto said the House members led by Alvarez acknowledged that only the Senate can discipline its members.

He said they agreed that instead of an arrest warrant, the other chamber would just file a complaint against De Lima before the Senate ethics committee.

Alvarez, however, said on Tuesday afternoon that he could not remember the part of the meeting where they agreed not to issue an arrest warrant against De Lima.

Show cause

Alvarez, meanwhile, said that De Lima's admission in media interviews regarding allegations raised during the House panel probe on the alleged drug trade in the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) would not suffice and that she still needs to answer the show cause order, which Fariñas and Umali served at the Senate on Tuesday morning.

"Kailangan pumunta siya diyan. Kasi under the rules, she interfered in the process of the House of Representatives. Hindi niya ginalang e,” Alvarez said in the Unang Balita interview.

On Monday, De Lima admitted telling her former driver-bodyguard Ronnie Dayan to hide and not attend the House inquiry on the NBP drug trade.

De Lima had also admitted giving Dayan money for the construction of his property in Pangasinan. The senator insisted that the money came from her own pocket and denied that it came from drugs or the public coffer.

By instructing Dayan not to attend the hearing, Alvarez insisted that De Lima “disrespected” the House of Representatives.

“Binastos niya 'yung Committee on Justice, 'yung mismong institution at ng House of Representatives na nag-issue ng subpoena kay Dayan para mag-attend doon sa hearing at magpaliwanag dahil nga palaging nababanggit ang pangalan niya at ni Sen. De Lima doon sa mga testimonies ng mga inmates,” Alvarez said.

Alvarez urged De Lima to just show up before the House justice committee and “face the truth.”

"Harapin niya na 'yung katotohanan. Maging honest na siya doon sa sambayanan. Tama na 'yung pagsisinungaling  dahil alam na ng taumbayan kasi lahat sinungaling na. Para kay Sen. De Lima, lahat sinungaling na, siya na lang nagsasabi ng totoo,” he said.

"Kahit naman aminin niya o hindi. Kung hindi niya aaminin, eventually the truth will catch up on her. Kung aminin niya, siguro mitigating circumstance 'yun,” he added. —ALG, GMA News