NBI chief to testify on alleged 'hitman' claim in Duterte impeachment trial

MANILA, Philippines – National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Melvin Matibag is scheduled to testify on Vice President Sara Duterte’s alleged grave threats on Tuesday, the eighth day of her impeachment trial. The Senate Impeachment Court will continue examining witnesses for impeachment Article IV, which pertains to Duterte’s alleged betrayal of public trust after she claimed to have hired a hitman to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she herself were killed. The NBI investigated the press conference where Duterte made the alleged assassination statements. READ: Matibag: Cayetano may be subpoenaed in 2019 SEA Games probe Matibag will be the last witness to testify on Article IV after the House prosecution panel withdrew eight other witnesses for the same matter, citing redundancy and the need to expedite the proceedings. It should be noted that Senator-Judges Pia and Alan Cayetano have traded heated remarks with Matibag since the NBI went to the Senate on May 11 to serve an arrest warrant on Sen. Bato dela Rosa. Most recently, the Cayetanos accused Matibag of intimidation after he announced a probe into alleged bidding and procurement irregularities in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, which the younger Cayetano chaired. Alan Cayetano also called Matibag “the Minion,” but the NBI director dismissed the remark, saying the “ad hominem” attack was the senator’s way of “getting attention.” Tuesday’s trial will be the first public encounter between Cayetano and Matibag since they met on May 11. /mcm