Congressmen at the House of Representatives responded with little more than indifference on Thursday, July 9, after Vice President Sara Duterte’s chief of staff dropped a cryptic weather warning outside the Senate.
“Nakahanda naman po kaming lahat,” said Deputy Speaker Rep. Paolo Ortega V, before adding a jab of his own: “Maghanda rin sila kasi usually, ‘pag bagyo, wala sila eh.”
The line that prompted him came from Atty. Zuleika Lopez, who had come to the Senate earlier that morning. Approached by reporters, Lopez declined to take questions, then volunteered without being asked: “Prepare for Typhoon Inday.” She offered no explanation for the remark.
Its ambiguity is the point of interest. A storm carrying the local name Inday was moving through Philippine waters that day. The nickname also belongs to Duterte, who has gone by it among supporters for years.
Among the prosecutors, at least one saw no riddle at all. Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora of San Juan City, an assistant majority leader, took Lopez at her word: “Totoo naman pong may bagyong Inday, so maghanda po tayo para sa bagyo.”
Zamora had the meteorology right. PAGASA reported that Inday, which had entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility earlier in the week at super typhoon strength, had weakened to typhoon status by Thursday while tracking west-northwestward across the Philippine Sea. The state weather bureau cautioned that the system, working alongside an enhanced southwest monsoon, could still deliver strong winds, rough seas and heavy rain across parts of the country.
Lopez’s presence at the chamber carried its own questions, given that the impeachment court had ordered a subpoena served on her the previous day. Impeachment clerk of court Renato Bantug said afterward that her visit was an open-door meeting confined to administrative and logistical business. By Bantug’s account to reporters, the coordination concerned matters such as staff access and room assignments for the defense team. Discussing the subpoena itself with her, he said, would not have been proper.
The subpoena had been signed the night before by Presiding Officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero, Bantug said, though it remained unserved as of that morning. He expected it to reach her within the day.
House Prosecution Legal Spokesperson Atty. Benjamin Tolosa Jr. and prosecutor Rep. Rodge Gutierrez said they had no information about what brought Lopez to the Senate, and expressed confidence the visit would not disturb the trial.
Lopez is scheduled to testify Tuesday, July 14. The prosecution named her a witness on the allegation that Duterte issued assassination threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and former Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Those threats trace to Nov. 23, 2024, when Lopez was cited in contempt and detained during a House inquiry into the alleged misuse of confidential funds by the Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education. Duterte went to the House complex that night and held a virtual press conference in which she said she had instructed someone to kill Marcos, the First Lady and Romualdez, then the Speaker, should a plot against her own life succeed. Her statements became the basis for one of the articles of impeachment.
The trial will also take up allegations of unexplained wealth and the bribery of Department of Education officials.
