NBI chief wants Davao head prosecutor out of Pulong Duterte’s libel case

National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag on Monday sought the inhibition of the Davao City head prosecutor from the libel and cyberlibel case filed against him last week by Davao City Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte, citing the “closeness of her relationship with the complainant.”

In an interview before he filed his urgent motion for inhibition with motion to suspend proceedings before the Department of Justice and Office of the City Prosecutor (OCP) in Davao City, Matibag cited “very reliable information” that OCP head prosecutor Jhopee Salvador Avanceña was the first cousin of Honeylet Avanceña, the partner of former President Rodrigo Duterte, who is the father of Paolo.

“We all know that even if there is no legal relationship because it’s by affinity; there is no relationship because they are not married but still, it develops a sense of alarming reason for us to [seek the transfer of the case]—because the deep relationship is still there—to remove the bias already,” Matibag told reporters.

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‘Very reliable’ info

In his motion, the NBI chief said he received “very reliable information” about the ties between the OCP head and Honeylet.

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Matibag noted that Prosecutor Avanceña was appointed on Feb. 7, 2022, by then President Duterte.

“Considering that complainant Congressman Paolo ‘Pulong’ Duterte is the son of former President Rodrigo Duterte from the latter’s first marriage to Elizabeth Zimmerman, City Prosecutor Jhopee Salvador Avanceña is essentially a part of his stepfamily and a step relative, specifically the first cousin of his father’s current partner, Honeylet Avanceña,” the NBI chief said in his motion.

“With all due respect, given the closeness of her relationship with the complainant, it behooves upon City Prosecutor Avanceña, being the head of the OCP of Davao City, and the sole approving authority of whatever resolution may be arrived at by her investigating prosecutor who may be assigned to handle this case, to recuse herself from taking cognizance thereof in the interest of fairness and due process,” Matibag added.

The NBI chief also said that photographs of the younger Duterte when he personally filed the cyberlibel and libel case on Oct. 23 inside the OCP appeared in Bilyonaryo News Channel.

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Institutional bias

Matibag noted that there was a “huge framed official presidential portrait” of Rodrigo Duterte on the wall, instead of the current President “as is customarily displayed in other government offices.”

“[This] speaks volumes of a biased environment indicative of perceived partiality, nay loyalty of that office to the former President, and conveys a predetermined institutional bias in favor of the complainant, who is a son of the former President,” he said.

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Aside from Matibag, also named in the case were dismissed police officer Rodulfo Gracioso Jr. and GMA Network officials and journalists.

The complaints were based on Gracioso’s claims, which were reported by the TV network on Sept. 25, that he had delivered suitcases containing cash to members of the Duterte family upon the instructions of former Speaker Lord Allan Velasco.

The Davao City lawmaker, who is seeking P10 million each for moral and exemplary damages, called the allegations false and “clearly intended to tarnish my name and that of my family.”

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“If we examine what happened from Gracioso’s sworn statement on Sept. 14 until the airing of his and Atty. Matibag’s interview on GMA on Sept. 25, we will see that there was malice to defame our client and the Duterte family in the immediate release of Gracioso’s allegations,” lawyer Peter Paul Danao, Duterte’s counsel, said in a statement after the filing of the case on Friday. INQ