📷Bayan Chairperson and Makabayan Coalition senatorial candidate Teddy Casiño
“If he were true to his name, Malaya should free himself of his loyalty to the Dutertes or Marcoses. He should shut up and allow Congress to decide on the fate of our impeachment complaint.”
This was Bayan Chairperson and Makabayan Coalition senatorial candidate Teddy Casiño‘s response to National Security Council Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya’s statement, labeling the Makabayan’s call for impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte as “political opportunism.”
“Makabayan’s call for impeachment left and right… very clearly, it is political opportunism and political mileage,” said Malaya in a press briefing at Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City yesterday.
Malaya served as the assistant secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) during the Duterte administration and has been appointed as the Assistant Director General at the National Security Council under the current Marcos Jr. administration.
“If we were opportunistic, sisipsip na lang kami sa mga Marcos at Duterte then laugh all the way to electoral victory or to cushy posts like Malaya’s,” the Makabayan senatorial bet stressed.
Casiño emphasized that Malaya is greatly mistaken in believing that the Makabayan Coalition is engaging in “political opportunism” by filing an impeachment complaint against Duterte. He argued that holding the Duterte administration accountable for its wrongdoings cannot be seen as opportunistic or self-serving.
“On the contrary, doing so makes us the subject of malicious intrigue, social media bashing, political persecution and even extrajudicial killing by their family, trolls and rabid supporters,” Casiño said.
Casiño emphasized the impeachment of a powerful and vengeful vice president like Sara Duterte poses a significant burden with no benefits for the Makabayan group, putting their lives and reputations at risk.
He further stressed that government officials, including Malaya, must always remember their accountability to the people. This is precisely why the Constitution outlines impeachment as a means of holding the highest and most powerful officials in the land accountable.
“Kung mamasamain ang impeachment, bakit pa tayo naglagay ng mga limitasyon at batas na nagpapanagot sa katiwalian sa gobyerno?” asked Casiño.
The Makabayan senatorial bet said Malaya’s statement seems to overlook the issue of VP Duterte’s misappropriation of confidential funds, which should be intended for security and intelligence activities.
In fact, Malaya should be the first to express outrage over this waste, as the National Security Council could have utilized those squandered resources to enhance operations related to the West Philippine Sea, he concluded. ( ZIA LUNA)
