MANILA – In order to remove Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. as the spokesperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTC-ELCAC) the Malacañang suggested that a quo warranto petition should be filed.
“Kung mayroong mga talagang sigurado sa kanilang legal position, magsampa po sila ng quo warranto dahil ‘yan naman po ang remedyo,” Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said on Friday.
A quo warranto petition is a legal remedy that questions someone’s legal right to hold the public office he or she occupies. This petition was previously used to unseat then-Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.
Some senators are calling for Parlade’s removal as NTF-ELCAC’s spokesperson as he also works as commander of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Southern Luzon Command.
“That’s actually subject to debate kasi hindi naman po malinaw dahil siya naman po ay tumatayong tagapagsalita na kabahagi rin po ang militar sa NTF-ELCAC,” Roque said.
“So, if he makes a statement, puwedeng nagsasalita siya bilang tagapagsalita ng militar na represented po doon sa NTF-ELCAC. So let’s not dwell into that,” he added.
On Tuesday, 15 senators filed a resolution censuring Parlade after his derogatory statements against members of the Senate after they called to defund the P19 billion budget of the country’s anti-insurgency task force.
Parlade became controversial for linking Maginhawa community pantry organizer Ana Patricia Non to a communist group. He also linked female celebrities Liza Soberano and Angel Locsin, Senate workers, and lawmakers to the communist movement without proof./PN
