MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it had placed seven Office of the Vice President (OVP) personnel on its immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO) following a request from the House of Representatives.
The recently signed ILBO were issued against the following:
- OVP chief of staff Zuleika Lopez
- Bids and awards committee chair Lemuel Ortonio
- Administrative and financial service director Rosalynne Sanchez
- Special disbursing officer Gina Acosta
- Chief accountant Julieta Villadelrey
- Former Department of Education (DepEd) assistant secretary Sunshine Charry Fajarda
- Former DepEd official Edward Fajarda
It was House committee chair on good government and public accountability Representative Joel Chua who requested the issuance of the lookout bulletin. The DOJ said Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla just signed the ILBO on Wednesday, November 6.
“The ILBO has been forwarded to the Bureau of Immigration (BI) who was tasked to monitor the subjects’ movements and alert the DOJ of any attempt by them to leave the country,” the DOJ said.
The House committee is probing how Duterte, who also once led DepEd, spent hundreds of millions in confidential funds in 2022 and 2023. Duterte’s staff, including Lopez, previously justified their absence in the hearings, claiming that the inquiry was not in aid of legislation. The country’s legislative chambers have the power to summon individuals and conduct hearings in accordance with its power to craft laws.
Meanwhile, the hearings so far also resulted in revelations about alleged bribery inside Duterte’s offices. Former DepEd head of procuring entity Gloria Mercado, DepEd director Resty Osias, and former DepEd spokesperson Michael Poa admitted having received envelopes containing cash from the Vice President.
Just last Tuesday, another high-ranking official, DepEd chief accountant Rhunna Catalan, revealed that she allegedly received nine envelopes containing P25,000 each from Duterte when she was the education secretary.
On ILBO
The ILBO was just signed and publicized on Wednesday. However, it was confirmed last Tuesday that Lopez had already flown to the US on November 4, a day before the House hearing and two days before the issuance of the ILBO.
“The pronouncement by some congressmen came before we received formally the request for an ILBO,” DOJ spokesperson Assistant Secretary Mico Clavano explained to reporters.
The order’s powers are, however, limited. ILBO is used for monitoring purposes only, and is not “a sufficient prohibition for a subject’s departure from the Philippines.”
Through the ILBO, immigration officers can double check if there are any pending warrants against subjects, if they have any violation or infraction, and to monitor their itineraries and whereabouts if they attempt to leave the country.
What can prevent a person from leaving the country is a hold departure order (HDO) or precautionary HDO (PHDO). However, these options are not available at the moment for the OVP’s staff, as an HDO can only be applied for when there is a pending case in court, while a PHDO is applicable only if there is already a complaint filed with prosecutors. – Rappler.com