Gordon lashes out at Robles: ‘Are you accusing us of humiliating you?’

Senator Richard Gordon on Thursday lashed out at former Immigration deputy commissioner Michael Robles for seemingly telling him that the latter is humiliated with his manner of questioning during the Senate inquiry into the alleged bribery-extortion of Bureau of Immigration (BI) officials.

During the hearing, Gordon asked Robles to confirm if former Immigration intelligence chief Charles Calima went to his office on December 2, as claimed by his fellow commissioner Al Argosino.

However, Robles refused to answer, invoking his right to remain silent.

But Gordon said he could no longer invoke his right because he has already answered questions in previous hearings.

“You are a lawyer, a former fiscal with sterling record!” Gordon told Robles, insisting that the latter has already waived his right.

Robles, however, insisted that he wanted to answer his questions in a proper forum and that he felt humiliated by Gordon’s questioning.

“I want to clarify that I am not retracting my previous statements. I respect the authority of the body but I intend to speak at the proper forum. This is already the fifth hearing, we are invited here as resource persons. We have been humiliated here,” Robles said.

This further irked Gordon.

“Are you accusing me of humiliating you or any senator here?” Gordon asked Robles.

Robles reply: “No, Mr. Chair, but the way the questions are crafted, the way they are asked affects our legal position on the matter.”

Gordon threatened Robles that he would cite the latter in contempt for resisting to answer his question.

“I will put you in contempt. I will lock you up here. I’ve held that before,” the senator said. “You accuse us of humiliating you? That is contemptible conduct, we’re never humiliating you.”

Argosino and Robles were reported to have received allegedly P50 million from businessman Jack Lam’s middleman, former police officer Wally Sombero, at a casino hotel in Parañaque City last November.

This was supposedly in exchange for the release of 1,316 illegal Chinese workers at Lam's Fontana Leisure Parks and Casino, which Lam’s owns. — RSJ, GMA News