House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro, along with ACT Teachers Party-list Rep.-elect Antonio Tinio, today strongly criticized Duterte Youth Party-list for what they described as an apparent attempt to blackmail Congress and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) into proclaiming the group as winners in the recent midterm elections despite unresolved legal and procedural issues.
“Totoo bang advocacy niyo laban sa kurapsyon? Bakit hindi kayo nagsasalita laban sa mga kontrobersya ni VP Duterte pero halos bumula ang bibig ninyo sa hindi agad na proklamasyon sa inyo gayong kasalanan niyo naman ang kakulangan sa mga requirement?” she added.
Duterte Youth recently filed a petition with the Supreme Court to compel Comelec to proclaim their group as winners, claiming that the delay undermines the “sovereign will of the people.” However, Castro and Tinio pushed back, labeling the move as an act of desperation and intimidation.
“Duterte Youth is trying to strong-arm Comelec and Congress by threatening to reveal ‘unscrupulous activities’ if they are not proclaimed,” Tinio stated. “If they truly have evidence of corruption, let them present it. Otherwise, this is nothing more than a baseless scare tactic to pressure the institutions into giving them what they want.”
“Hinahamonnamin ang Duterte Youth: kung talagang may ebidensya kayong sinasabi, ilabas niyo na ito. Ipakita niyo hanggang sa susunod na linggo. Kung hindi, malinaw na pananakot lang ang ginagawa niyo para maproklama kayo,” Tinio said.
The lawmakers also emphasized that Duterte Youth’s tactics further expose their lack of respect for due process and democratic principles.
“Ang pag-iwas nila sa mga akusasyon ng Red-tagging at iba pang paglabag sa batas ay malinaw na pagtatangka na iligaw ang usapan. Hindi ito ang uri ng kinatawan na nararapat sa ating mamamayan,” she added.
The ACT Teachers representatives reiterated their call for Duterte Youth to follow legal processes and address the pending cases against them instead of resorting to threats.
“If Duterte Youth truly believes in the rule of law as they claim, they should stop their political grandstanding and comply with the processes in place. Anything less is hypocrisy,” Tinio said.
“Ang hustisya at demokrasya ay hindi maaaring igawad sa pamamagitan ng pananakot o panlilinlang. Ang mga institusyon tulad ng Comelec at Kongreso ay nararapat lang na protektahan ang integridad ng proseso ng eleksyon,” Castro concluded.
The ACT Teachers Party-list urged the Filipino people to remain vigilant against attempts to undermine democratic institutions and to demand accountability from all public officials and groups, regardless of their political affiliations. #
