The Manila Times
MALACAÑANG called on law enforcement agencies Saturday to act on reports about an alleged plan by Vice President Sara Duterte’s supporters to attack Malacañang on June 12. Palace Press Officer Claire Castro issued the statement after columnist Ramon Tulfo claimed on social media that intelligence reports discussed during a meeting in Camp Crame allegedly involved a plan by pro-Duterte groups to "storm Malacañang" on Independence Day. In a statement, Castro said it was the responsibility of law enforcement and investigative agencies to address any unlawful activities should credible threats emerge. "It is within the mandate of law enforcement agencies and investigating bodies to act on these kinds of illegal activities," Castro said. Tulfo, on a Facebook post, cited an unnamed source who allegedly attended a meeting at Camp Crame. He said the agenda of the meeting included discussions of a supposed plan by pro-Duterte groups to attack the Palace during the Independence Day celebration. "My tweety bird who attended the meeting in Camp Crame says the agenda was the plan to storm Malacañang by pro-Sara groups on June 12, to coincide with Independence Day. The PNP has received intelligence reports of a planned attack on the Palace to be led by a religious sect," Tulfo said. "According to my tweety bird, the conferees tackled the defense of Malacañang," he added. Castro, however, said authorities have yet to verify the supposed plot. She urged the public to remain cautious against groups seeking to exploit political tensions. "Let us all be wary of the forces of darkness," the Palace official said. "But actions like these are nothing new, as they have long wanted to install their leader who is greedy for power, even before 2028," she added. The president is expected to lead the country’s Independence Day celebrations on June 12, although details of the event have yet to be announced. Destabilization plot Meanwhile, former Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers has called on the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate the June 4 hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee led by Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, as he believes it is a "destabilization plot" against the government. Barbers was among those who were named by the 18 former Marine personnel who were employed by resigned Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co as among those who received "suitcases" of money from the flood control scandal. In a statement on Saturday, Barbers asked if it was already "legal to plot destabilization moves in broad daylight using government resources, in the guise of holding a legitimate Senate hearing.” “The Senate majority of 12 can declare all seats vacant. There is no debate about it. Even the deposed ex-Senate president admitted as much in his press conference immediately after the bogus meeting," Barbers added. Barbers even noted that in his press conference, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano conceded that a majority of 12 can declare all positions vacant except the positions of Senate president and the Senate president pro tempore. "Therefore, the Blue Ribbon Committee chairmanship has been validly and legitimately transferred to Sen. Erwin Tulfo on June 3, making the June 4 gathering unauthorized at the very least,” Barbers said. He said that the meeting held on June 4 in the guise of a Blue Ribbon hearing is an "illegal assembly and the leaders are senators.” "If the assembly is illegal and aimed at attacking the government and other people, done inside a government-owned infrastructure and used government funds, this becomes an affront and challenge to the legitimate government. Is this not a ground for the filing, at the very least, of graft charges against the leaders and participants of this illegal, seditious, and rebellious assembly," Barbers said. The former House Dangerous Drugs committee chairman called on the Ombudsman and the National Bureau of Investigation to "investigate the matter with dispatch, prevent a repeat of the same, and immediately file the corresponding cases as warranted.” Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said that he is ready to face the 18 former Marines who have accused him and several lawmakers of receiving suitcases of money from Co. "But the problem is, the accusation needs to have details. Because if you confront them and that’s all the accusation amounts to, it’s like you’re just giving them a platform. So at the moment, what they have against House members — against the House prosecution panel — are barefaced lies and allegations. I don't think they deserve any platform to further their lies, and we will not be a party to it," Ridon said in Filipino during a forum. To prove his point, Ridon brought a suitcase full of mangoes and wigs, ostensibly referring to Sen. Imee Marcos, who has been teased about having a face of a mango, and Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, who is mocked for wearing a hairpiece. He also described the hearing as a "Blue Ribbon cosplay" as the committee did not have a full secretariat and stenographer. Lawyer Dino de Leon said they plan to file a case against the members of the so-called "fake" Blue Ribbon Committee, as they do not have the authority to hold hearings.
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