Ombudsman can take over investigations on VP Sara, says Martires

Ombudsman Samuel Martires said his office could take over the investigations by the National Bureau of Investigation and a committee of the House of Representatives on Vice President Sara Duterte if it determined it already had jurisdiction.

Martires thus said after Justice Undersecretary Jesse Andres remarked that the Ombudsman had the authority to discipline and investigate government officials in the context of Duterte's alleged threats against President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.

Martires, however, said that he has yet to find anything that the Ombudsman could investigate.

“If in the opinion of Usec. Andres we have that power, I would advise Usec. Andres to shut up. Even if the NBI is now investigating the acts of the Vice President, if we feel that it is now within the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman, we can tell the NBI, stop it, we will continue with the investigation,” Martires said. 

Martires said that the Ombudsman could investigate if the threats were made in the course of her duties as Vice President. 

“If not, that will be personal and we have no jurisdiction over these things,” he said. 

GMA Integrated News has reached out to the Department of Justice and Andres for their comment.

Martires said that the Ombudsman could take over any government investigation at any time referring to Republic Act 6770 or the Ombudsman Act of 1989. 

Sec. 15 of the law provided that “in the exercise of this primary jurisdiction, it may take over, at any stage, from any investigatory agency of Government, the investigation of such cases.”

Martires said it could also take over the investigation by the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability which is looking into the alleged misuse of more than P600M confidential funds by the Office of the Vice President and Department of Education. 

“We can do that but as a matter of courtesy, you know, we belong to different departments, branches of government, as a matter fo courtesy, we’ll tell Congress,” he said. 

But House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability Chair Rep. Joel Chua said that their investigation is part of the House’s legislative work where the Ombudsman could not interfere. 

“Yung sa amin kasi in aid of legislation. Kaya magkaiba po. In so far as ‘yung sa DOJ, NBI, eh ito po ay usapin ng mga nasa Executive Branch,” he said. 

Martires who has been appointed by former President Rodrigo Duterte to the Supreme Court as associate justice in 2017 and as Ombudsman in 2018 denied that his stance was due to this. 

“I’m not close to the President. Never have I been close to the President. During the six-year term of the President, you can check the logbook of Malacanang how many times I have been there,” he said. —NB, GMA Integrated News