Padilla insists he replied to obstruction raps

Senator Robinhood Padilla insisted he had replied to the obstruction of justice complaint filed against him over his alleged role in Senator Ronald dela Rosa’s escape from Senate custody, but the Office of the Ombudsman maintained it had not received any response, creating a discrepancy. Padilla on Monday denied ignoring the Ombudsman’s summons, stating in a manifestation at the Senate convening as an impeachment court, “What the Ombudsman said that I did not comply with their request to file my counteraffidavit is unfortunate because this is not true.” He insisted he had filed a counteraffidavit, even showing a copy at the Senate, emphasizing, “This one I’m holding is the original copy, because to me, the original copy is important.” Padilla’s lawyer, Julius Henry Balteza, affirmed the senator’s position, stating that the senator filed his counteraffidavit on July 9, the deadline for submission. Balteza also showed reporters the original copy marked with a “received” stamp from the Office of the Ombudsman. “For now we will not divulge any legal matters concerning the counteraffidavit of the case, but our position is that the obstruction case against Senator Padilla has no merit,” Balteza added. Padilla blamed the media for reporting “propaganda” that he had ignored the summons. However, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla himself had stated on Friday that Padilla “ignored” his summons. According to Remulla, Padilla and his co-respondents, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano and dismissed Senate sergeant at arms Mao Aplasca, were given a “non-extendible period of 15 days” to respond to the obstruction-of-justice complaint filed on June 3 by activist coalition Tindig Pilipinas. Remulla stated that Padilla “has not said anything about the cases and the summons given to him.” Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano maintained there was no response from the Senator. “It’s good that he submitted a counteraffidavit, which he said is an original, but it does not reflect in our system. We will rely on what our system says and we will take it from there,” Clavano said in Filipino. According to Clavano, Cayetano and Aplasca had filed their respective counteraffidavits. The incident stems from May 11, when National Bureau of Investigation agents enforcing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court attempted to arrest Dela Rosa, who had appeared in the Senate after hiding for over six months to participate in Cayetano’s coup against then Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III. Dela Rosa was subsequently granted “protective custody” by the new Senate leadership but left the premises in the early hours of May 14, accompanied by Padilla, following a shooting incident at the Senate that President Marcos himself described as “fake.” Dela Rosa has since disappeared, and the government now considers him a “fugitive from justice.”