Duterte to respond to quo warranto case

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte will answer a “quo warranto” petition lodged against him by suspended lawyer Elly Pamatong, Malacañang assured Friday, June 29. “We will respond as ordered,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said in a statement.

The Supreme Court has ordered Duterte to comment within 10 days on the quo warranto plea filed against him by Pamatong, a former nuisance presidential candidate.

Pamatong filed the quo warranto petition on June 6, questioning Duterte’s “capacity” to serve as the highest official in the land.

Pamatong branded Duterte as “usurper” as the latter allegedly filed an “illegal” certificate of candicacy for the May 9, 2016 presidential race.

To recall, a video clip of Pamatong claiming that he “assumed full-fledged powers of the presidency” became viral on social media last year.

Duterte, then substitute candidate for Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan partymate Martin Diño, ended up winning the 2016 presidential elections after he garnered more than 16 million votes.

Malacañang earlier downplayed Pamatong’s quo warranto petition against Duterte as “utterly bereft of legal and actual merit.”

According to Rules 66 of the Rules of Court, a quo warranto plea can only be filed by a solicitor general, public prosecutors, and a person claiming to be entitled to usurped public office or position. (Ruth Abbey Gita/ SunStar Philippines)

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