Metro Manila, Philippines – The anti-graft court on Tuesday, Nov. 10, ordered the 90-day suspension of Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez from the House of Representatives, pending resolution of his plunder case.
In a resolution, the court ordered Romualdez to stop performing the functions of his office or any other office for 90 days from receipt of the order.
The court also directed its clerk of court to furnish a copy of the resolution to the House speaker through the Office of the Secretary General and asked the latter to inform the court of any action taken within five days of receiving it.
No operational CCTV
In a separate order issued on the same day, the court raised concerns over security and monitoring deficiencies at the Quezon City Jail, where Romualdez is detained, following allegations that he was allowed to leave the facility without authorization, which media personality Ramon Tulfo later retracted.
Following its inspection of the jail, the court found that only 220 of the facility’s 450 security cameras or closed-circuit television (CCTV) were operational, including just 28 of 152 cameras in the area where high-profile inmates are detained, with no functioning cameras fo Romualdez’s detention cell.
It said these deficiencies prevented it from independently verifying the lawmaker’s continuous presence inside the facility, but noted that this did not constitute a finding that he had left the jail without authorization.
The court also flagged inconsistencies in JSupt Maria Lourdes Pacion’s statements about the presence of Romualdez’s personal aide inside the facility and referred the matter to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) for evaluation and appropriate action, including a possible referral to the Office of the Ombudsman.
The court directed the BJMP to submit a report on the CCTV system condition within 10 days and, within 30 days, report on its evaluation of the personal aide arrangement and any action taken.
