MALACAÑANG denied on Monday that the Duterte administration is planning to hasten the resolution of election protest filed by former senator and losing vice presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to eventually unseat Vice President Leni Robredo.
In a statement, Communications Secretary Martin Andanar belied claims of Senator Antonio Trillanes IV that the government is creating a timeline to seat a new vice president in 2017.
"We do not know where Senator Antonio Trillanes III got his information or timeline," Andanar said.
"What we all know is that the President, as a firm advocate of the rule of law, believes in judicial independence as a bedrock of our democratic system," he added.
Andanar made the remark in reaction to Trillanes' message to Robredo not to fully trust the President that she will be able to finish her six-year term.
Last Thursday, Duterte assured Robredo that there is no plot to remove her from office and that she would be the country's second highest official until her term ends.
But Trillanes insisted that Robredo would be replaced, noting that he received information that the President's allies are making a move to ensure that Marcos would win the electoral protest.
Marcos has filed an electoral protest, questioning the victory of Robredo in the May 9 vice presidential elections. Robredo won the vice presidential race over Marcos, with only a slim margin of more than 200,000.
Andanar, however, said Duterte has no intention to influence the Supreme Court, which will sit as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) to decide on the petition of Marcos.
"He (Duterte) will respect the decision of the Supreme Court which will sit as the PET in the election protest filed by former Senator Bongbong Marcos," he said. (Sunnex)