MANILA, Philippines — The Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies chaired by Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero has requested the office of Senate president Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel to issue a warrant of arrest against former Commission on Elections chairman Andres Bautista.
According to a news report by DZRH radio on Monday, Escudero made the request to Pimentel’s office after the Senate panel cited Bautista for contempt over the latter’s continued absence in the hearings being conducted by the committee.
The report also said that Bautista, through a letter, had informed Escudero’s panel that he was unable to attend the Senate hearings because he was in the United States and undergoing medical treatment.
Last year, Bautista’s estranged wife, Patricia Paz Bautista alleged that the former Comelec chief had nearly P1 billion in ill-gotten wealth that he could have allegedly amassed from questionable transactions while in public office.
Patricia claimed that her husband, who was appointed as Comelec chairman in May 2015 by then President Benigno Aquino III, had money in banks, condominiums, and interest and shares in companies established overseas that the poll chief allegedly did not declare in his 2016 Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth with a total estimated value of almost P1 billion.
