Imee Marcos, senator-judge, justifies her exposed partisanship for Sara Duterte. She says the impeachment case was filed to prevent Sara from becoming president in 2028. She says it has nothing to do with accountability.
Is it a coincidence that Duterte Diehard Supporters also echo that same line? Which only proves that it is a scripted defense effectively organized by the well-oiled Duterte troll machinery. Obviously, there is more to Duterte money than the ginormous monthly lawyer’s fees for Nicolas Kaufman.
Her co-conspirator senator-judges Ronald”Bato” Dela Rosa, Robin Padilla, Christopher “Bong” Go, of course share that Imee line. We thought they were only four. But there’s more.
A video clip of the senate session of Tuesday, June 10, purportedly taken by someone in the visitors’ gallery exposed a very sinister plot behind what happened after an attempt by Dela Rosa to dismiss the impeachment case. It appears now that what happened that night was not a session after all but a pre-planned sabotage concocted by a cabal of conspirators with no regard for constitutional standards.
In the clip, senator-judge Joel Villanueva – of the Jesus is Lord family – was seen coaching/goading Imee to interrupt the manifestation of senator-judge Risa Hontiveros. Villanueva urged Imee to speak before the microphone to say “Point of order.” In the background was Dela Rosa who was seen gesticulating to Imee to proceed with her point of order. A few seconds later, senator-judge JV Ejercito was seen entering the frame and joining Villanueva and Imee in the tense attempt to interrupt Risa.
The short clip reveals the secret. There was a cabal of conspirators who planned that night’s sinister moves as though they were not senator-judges. Far from it, in fact, for the plan involved dismissing the case – something not part of what the 1987 Constitution prescribes the Senate to do.
Was the senate president aware of what transpired at the back of the session hall? From his perch as the presiding officer, it is impossible that he did not have a view of the Imee-Joel clique going on at the back. His view was panoramic. He was not undergoing cosmetic procedure. Dela Rosa, Villanueva, Marcos, Ejercito were all talking in whispers but their voices were loud enough to have been captured by the camera’s microphone. It was, as they say on the streets, hulicam.
Villanueva was heard to coach Imee: “Go to the microphone. Say that the point of order takes precedence. Para tumigil sya (so she will stop talking – referring to Risa Hontiveros).”
After Imee’s interruption, the senate president then announced he was suspending the session, effectively cutting off the manifestation of Risa.
Joel Villanueva’s father, the Jesus Is Lord founder Eddie Villanueva (he once called himself a bishop), is a sitting congressman of the House representing the party list CIBAC (Citizens Battle Against Corruption). Fact: Aside from father and son in politics, another son Jonjon is mayor of Bocaue, Bulacan; deceased daughter Joni Villanueva Tugna was formerly the mayor; her husband Sherwin Tugna was formerly a congressman but is now vice mayor to his brother in-law. Five members in politics is an obese dynasty.
But the once-bishop Villanueva had a mouthful of an alibi to say: “Political dynasty is not applicable to our family. We are here because of our advocacy.”
The bishop talks like a seasoned trapo. Let’s hope Jesus Christ himself taught him these words because it doesn’t sound like it is coming from humility: “For example, you are a family, your parents raised you with love for the country. If you have five siblings and one of them served the country first, shouldn’t the other four have the right to serve?”
The family also immortalized its name. The municipal sports center of Bocaue is named the Mayor Joni Villanueva Tugna Sports Center. Was it built from government funds?
So what is the record of the Villanueva pastors against corruption because they were “raised with love”?
The facts of the following case are publicly available in the web.
In November 2016, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales issued an order to dismiss senator Joel Villanueva from public office. The order was a result of his alleged misuse of P10M in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF). Recall that under the last Aquino presidency, the PDAF became a euphemism for pork barrel. The public money in question was allocated to Villanueva in 2008 when he sat as congressman for the CIBAC party list.
The Ombudsman concluded that the disbursements were coursed through a questionable NGO for an agricultural and livelihood project that turned out to be – like what abounds in Davao city – ghost projects. Sounds familiar? The money was released without a valid liquidation, with fictitious or unverified beneficiaries like Sara Duterte’s Mary Grace Piattos. The Ombudsman imposed an administrative sanction on Villanueva for grave misconduct, serious dishonesty and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of public service.
However, in addition to the administrative charges, the Ombudsman filed criminal charges against Villanueva in the Sandiganbayan. He was charged with two counts of violation of the Anti Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, one count of malversation through falsification of public documents. These charges remain pending until today with no final judgment of conviction rendered.
When the dismissal order was issued against him, Villanueva was elected to the senate on May 9, 2016. Villanueva filed a motion for reconsideration with the Ombudsman, claiming he was a victim of identity theft. But he never stepped down from his senate seat. The Senate has neither suspended nor dismissed him.
On the video clip coaching Imee Marcos, Villanueva said this was malicious. He said he would have done the same thing to assist the minority in legislative procedure. Do you think that is the truth? That night, he voted to “remand” the articles of impeachment to the House together with the 18, not with the glorious and enlightened 5. The preacher’s son lies.
Joel Villanueva is not just a coach of Imee Marcos. He has become your typical politico who has a characteristic aversion to accountability. Logically, his loyalty is to the accountability-challenged Sara Duterte. It is easy to break the Constitution even if the whole country watches because to opt for impunity is to hide one’s sins of corruption. Survival is more important than following the Constitution.
Joel Villanueva is the new Tessie Aquino Oreta who was never forgiven by the public despite her apologies and tears. And it wasn’t just Oreta. Other senators who were partisan for Erap Estrada, such as Nikki Coseteng for one, never recovered for not rising to nobility with the cold impartiality expected of senator-judges. Take note, JV Ejercito.
We do not have such senator-judges anymore. That is why we must judge them. And we will.
The views in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of VERA Files.
