Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson has questioned what he described as a recurring pattern of prominent personalities being hospitalized after they are cited in contempt or face arrest over criminal cases.
Lacson raised the issue following the confinement of former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan and Senator Rodante Marcoleta at the Philippine National Police General Hospital while facing plunder and graft charges before the Sandiganbayan.
“Since time immemorial, when a prominent personality is cited in contempt or faces arrest, he/she suddenly gets sick and needs to be hospitalized,” he said, adding that the same pattern has been observed in previous high-profile cases.
The senator also questioned who is paying for the hospitalization of Bonoan and Marcoleta, noting that the PNP General Hospital is primarily intended for police personnel and their qualified dependents.
Some police officers, according to him, have reportedly been denied admission because of limited space.
Lacson said he plans to raise the issue during the deliberations on the proposed 2027 budgets of the Philippine National Police and the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
“I intend to raise this when the budget deliberations for the PNP and DILG for 2027 starts. I will ask, who are authorized to be confined there and who shoulders the expenses for the PNP-GH when non-dependents are confined there?” he said.IMT
