Tulfo dismisses Cayetano's challenge on flood control probe

Senator Erwin Tulfo, chair of the Senate blue ribbon committee, on Friday branded Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano as “Boy Banat” and told him to “relax” after the latter challenged him to continue the panel’s investigation into the controversial flood control anomalies. “We have investigations into flood control that we will conduct. So tell him to just relax and not get too worked up. Really, ‘Boy Banat’ just says whatever,” Tulfo, speaking Filipino, said in an interview with DZMM. “He just has to wait because the Blue Ribbon Committee has yet to be formally convened. The point is, we will get to that. We will not stop investigating the flood control issue,” he added. Tulfo was asked for his reaction after Cayetano in a Facebook live on Thursday alleged that Tulfo, Sen. Panfilo Lacson and other senators involved in the blue ribbon committee’s flood control investigation were close with, and following orders from, Malacañang. Cayetano in his live likewise proposed that in exchange for his support to the investigation of the National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag into the alleged procurement irregularities in the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, that the minority senators be allowed to probe into the flood control mess. “Senator Alan is complicating things. We have made it clear several times that the Blue Ribbon Committee will begin its work after the [State of the Nation Address], and we will set a schedule, okay? We will investigate it,” Tulfo said in Filipino. Tulfo likewise rejected the narrative that the Senate had abandoned the flood control issue because of its focus on Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial, pointing out that the proceedings would take precedence and use the Senate session hall. Tulfo then questioned whether Cayetano wanted to delay the impeachment proceedings. During the sixth day of Duterte’s trial, Cayetano manifested in trial that Matibag’s announcement of the SEA Games probe was an attempt to “intimidate” the impeachment court, noting that Matibag is scheduled to testify in Duterte’s trial. Cayetano, who chaired the organizing committee for the 2019 SEA Games, was backed by his sister, Sen. Pia Cayetano, who previously chaired the Senate blue ribbon committee before Tulfo took over the panel. Malacañang denied the Cayetano siblings’ claim, saying NBI’s probe was not intended to intimidate anyone. Matibag also said that the NBI is only doing its mandate to investigate, which he pointed out will not stop just because he will testify in a proceeding. /jpv