Malacañang said Wednesday it would not interfere in the legal proceedings involving former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, stressing that his case should be resolved based on evidence and the law.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said decisions on Romualdez’s custody and medical condition would be left to the courts, authorities and his doctors following his arrest on a Sandiganbayan warrant.
“Sa ngayon walang pinag-uusapan tungkol sa hospital arrest, depende na po kasi iyan kung ano po ang magiging findings ng doktor,” Castro said at a Palace briefing.
Romualdez, a cousin of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., was arrested Monday evening on a warrant issued in connection with plunder charges filed by the Office of the Ombudsman.
His camp has sought continued confinement at the hospital, where he was being treated after reportedly experiencing a “cardiovascular event.”
Castro rejected suggestions that Romualdez was receiving special treatment, saying law enforcement officers had acted on the arrest warrant and could not force the former House leader out of the hospital if doctors determined that he was not yet fit for transfer.
“Hindi naman din maipipilit ng (Philippine National Police) o ng pamunuan ng (Department of the Interior and Local Government) na dalhin agad ang isang akusado na nasertipikahan na hindi pa nararapat na tanggalin or i-remove from the hospital,” she said.
Castro said the Palace would give Romualdez’s doctors the “benefit of the doubt” regarding his medical condition.
She also said she had no information on whether Marcos had spoken with Romualdez or planned to visit him.
Asked about the President’s personal feelings over his cousin’s arrest, Castro said those were not relevant to the judicial process.
“Ang kailangan lang po dito ay dapat mapanagot ang dapat na mapanagot. Hindi na po siguro makakaapekto kung anuman ang damdamin ng Pangulo – masaya, malungkot, anuman – hindi na po siya importante (What is needed here is for those who should be held accountable, be held accountable. Whatever the President’s feelings may be – whether happy, sad, or anything else – are no longer important),” Castro said.
She also rejected claims that the administration had “nilaglag” or abandoned Romualdez following his arrest.
“Okay, hindi ko gusto iyong word na ‘nilaglag’… Dahil ito naman po, according to the Office of the Ombudsman, mayroon silang nakitang ebidensiya. So, walang dapat nilalaglag dito; kung ano lang iyong ebidensiya na nandidiyan, iyon lang – doon lang tayo bumase,” she said.
Romualdez, former representative of Leyte’s 1st District, was arrested along with charges against him, former Ako Bicol party list representative Zaldy Co and two others over the alleged misuse of P7.4 billion in government funds.
The Ombudsman has said it would oppose Romualdez’s request for continued hospital confinement and seek an assessment by government doctors on whether his condition could be managed outside the hospital.
Photo courtesy of Inquirer.net
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