Senator’s prolonged absence fuels questions over Ombudsman case and whether she can still vote in Sara Duterte impeachment proceedings
By Benjamin Cuaresma
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Loren Legarda is eager to return to the Philippines, but her homecoming will depend on when she completes treatment in France for a serious lung condition, her spokesperson Tony La Viña said Thursday.
La Viña said Legarda remains under medical care abroad and has yet to receive a definite date for her return.
He declined to disclose details of the senator’s illness, citing medical privacy, but said it may involve an autoimmune condition that Legarda has dealt with for years and can flare up when she is under stress.
“When treatment is done, that’s when she will return. I don’t know if there’s a specific date,” La Viña said.
Legarda first went on medical leave from Aug. 3 to 5 and subsequently sought five extensions, with her latest covering Oct. 5 to 9.
Her extended absence has drawn attention as the Senate continues proceedings on the impeachment case against Vice President Sara Duterte, particularly after the impeachment court revised its ruling on the threshold required for conviction.
Under the amended ruling, the two-thirds requirement will be based on senators who are legally and factually capable of participating when the vote is taken, rather than automatically requiring 16 votes.
La Viña said it remains uncertain whether Legarda will be allowed to participate in the vote because she has not taken part in the trial.
Legarda’s continued stay in France has also raised questions because she reportedly left the Philippines on Aug. 2, shortly before the Office of the Ombudsman announced a preliminary investigation involving her and her son, Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste, over alleged “ghost” solar power projects reportedly worth P10 billion.
La Viña rejected suggestions that Legarda’s absence was intended to avoid the allegations.
“There’s no flight here. So there’s no evasion,” he said, pointing out that no warrant of arrest has been issued against the senator.
“She’s not running away from anything,” La Viña added.
He maintained that Legarda had no involvement in Leviste’s solar business and said her lawyers had already submitted counter-affidavits before the Ombudsman in response to the allegations.
La Viña also said Legarda does not share the view of Senators Alan Peter and Pia Cayetano that cases involving some senator-judges were intended to pressure them into voting a certain way in the impeachment proceedings.
“I asked her about that and she said that she does not see it that way. This is not about the impeachment,” he said.
Instead, La Viña linked the controversy surrounding Legarda and her son to Leviste’s anti-corruption campaign in the House of Representatives.
“Because obviously, he ruffled feathers in the House,” he said.
Despite being abroad, Legarda is monitoring developments in the impeachment proceedings, including the dispute over the conviction threshold.
Whether she will eventually be able to cast a vote, however, remains unresolved.
La Viña said he was uncertain which interpretation would ultimately govern Legarda’s participation, particularly after Sen. Erwin Tulfo said senators physically present on voting day could cast their votes.
For now, the senator’s return remains tied to one condition: the completion of her treatment.
And according to her spokesperson, Legarda is ready to come home as soon as her medical condition allows.
ia/xf
