Duterte a no-show again at 'grave threat' probe

FOR the second time, former president Rodrigo Duterte was a no-show in Friday's preliminary investigation before the Quezon City Prosecutor's Office in connection with a complaint filed against him by a lawmaker at the House of Representatives.

Duterte's two female lawyers, who appeared before Senior Assistant Prosecutor Ulric Badiola, said the former president could not attend because Quezon City was «very far» from Davao where he is staying.

ACT Teacher Party-list Rep. France Castro, who filed the grave threats complaint against the former leader, said he submitted a counter-affidavit through his counsels.

Asked if the prosecutor's office is ready to come up with a resolution, Castro said «they may come up with it by January.»

Castro had filed a supplemental complaint against the father of Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte for his «continued grave threats against me.»

Asked by The Manila Times if she has proof that she was being pointed at by the former president when he mentioned «France» in various instances, Castro said she could substantiate her allegations.

«I am very sure that I am the one being threatened by the former president, and we have clearly cited them (proofs) in my complaint,» the lawmaker said.

Castro accused the former president of grave threats in relation to Section 6 of the Cybercrime Prevention Act following his statements last October in a program on SMNI.

The party-list lawmaker said his statements «gravely threatened my life, liberty, and security and that of my family.»

Duterte said in the television program, «I told her [daughter] to be frank. Say that this intelligence fund, I will use for Filipinos' minds because my target is you communists in Congress.»

The former chief executive was protected from prosecution when he was president, but now that he is an ordinary citizen, he can be charged for alleged crimes committed in the Philippines, said a group allied with Castro that rallied outside the Department of Justice (DoJ) building in the city.

In a counter-affidavit, a copy of which was obtained by this newspaper, Duterte said the complainant, in reference to Castro, took advantage of «trivial and measly concerns in