QUEZON City – Former policewoman Royina Garma, whose career progressed with former President Rodrigo Duterte’s rise to power, was cited in contempt Thursday last week by the House of Representatives Quad Committees investigating extrajudicial killings in the course of the infamous drug war.
Cong. Caraps Paduano moved to cite Garma in contempt after revealing that she attempted to flee the Philippines to the United States late last month as soon as her name was implicated in the killing of three Chinese prisoners inside the Davao Prison and Penal Farm in the early days of the Duterte administration.
The attempt to flee was unsuccessful after she was refused entry to the United States for still undisclosed reasons. The US had apparently canceled her visa. Paduano remarked that Garma knew the real reason “deep in her heart.”
Garma also denied any connection after getting quizzed by Paduano on her perceived “special” closeness to the former President. She was appointed General Manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office only 15 days from her optional retirement as a policewoman in June 2019.
The quad comm decided to detain Garma in the House detention facilities after initially implying that she would be held at the National Correctional for Women in Mandaluyong City. The House detention facilities had become crowded with resource persons held in contempt for lying to the Quad Comm.
The same hearing also resulted in contempt citations against SPO4 Arthur Narsolis who refused to attend, and lawyer Harry Roque who defied a subpoena requiring the submission of documents relating to the rise in assets of his family corporation – Biancham Holdings Corp./PN
