HOUSE Deputy Speaker and Samar Rep. Gina “Sarah” Garin on Monday said disaster response and the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte can proceed simultaneously, rejecting suggestions that Congress was prioritizing the trial over Filipinos affected by severe weather.
“It is not true that we are not attending to the problems of the people,” Garin said in an online press briefing with the House prosecution team.
She said government agencies were responding to the effects of the severe weather, including repairing downed power lines and clearing roads affected by landslides, while some flood control projects had also helped mitigate flooding in several areas.
Garin said Congress, however, could not suspend its accountability work, which she described as part of its constitutional duty.
“It is our mandate to show and let the people know where government funds are going because it is not our personal money; it is the money of the Filipino people,” Garin said.
The House shifted to a work-from-home arrangement and canceled its plenary session early Monday due to heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat. The plenary session is scheduled to resume on Aug. 11.