MANILA – Actress-turned-political aide Nadia Montenegro has resigned from her post in Sen. Robin Padilla’s office after being implicated in an incident report alleging marijuana use inside the Senate premises, a charge she vehemently denies.
Padilla’s chief of staff, Atty. Rudolf Philip Jurado, confirmed on Monday that the senator accepted Montenegro’s resignation.
“Today, we received the written explanation and letter of resignation of Ms. Nadia Montenegro. Her resignation has been accepted,” Jurado said in a statement.
In her resignation letter, Montenegro branded the accusations as “unfounded” and “maliciously shared to the media.”
She clarified that the supposed contraband was only a vape with grape-flavored scent.
“I denied smoking or using marijuana inside the comfort room… If only this Honorable Office will secure the CCTV footages, it can be vividly established that I even showed him said vape,” Montenegro said.
She lamented that the controversy subjected her and her family to public ridicule, with her children being unfairly branded as “children of a drug addict.”
She said the ordeal brought “great pain and distress,” compelling her to resign “for the sake of my mental health and the welfare of my children.”
“Even with a heavy heart but for the sake of my mental health… I decided to tender my resignation from my position in Senator Padilla’s office effective immediately,” she wrote. “My decision to resign should not be misconstrued as an admission of guilt – it is not. Rather, it is a demonstration of my deep respect for the Senate and Senator Padilla’s office.”
Montenegro thanked Padilla for the trust and opportunity to serve, while urging the Senate to investigate how sensitive incident reports are being leaked to the media.
The report that triggered the controversy stated that on Aug. 12, Senate security officer Victor Patelo was alerted by a staff member of Sen. Panfilo Lacson about an “unusual odor” from the ladies’ restroom near the senators’ extension offices.
“He (Patelo) claimed the odor resembled that of ‘marijuana’ and stated that the only person in the area at the time was allegedly Ms. Nadia Montenegro,” read the report dated Aug. 13./PN
