Janette Garin: Making fun of prosecutors' saliva, sniffles is ‘bullying’

MANILA, Philippines — House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Janette Garin has disputed claims that conditions observed in members of the prosecution panel in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial — like having saliva buildup and colds — indicate lying.

Garin, in a press briefing on Friday, took offense at the statements allegedly made by a former official of the government that saliva buildup and a runny nose are signs that a person is lying.

“Is that a bad thing?  No.  Do we have to make fun out of it?  No, it’s actually bullying.  The prosecutors are just doing their job,” she added.

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According to Garin, a medical doctor by profession, it is a “big lie” that should not come even from former members of the government.

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“I also saw something; I believe this is one of my friends, and she appears to be a spokesperson of the defense panel. I’m not sure what her designation is if she is a spokesperson.  But I was shocked with what she said as she claimed that having too much saliva and a runny nose are symbols of lying,” Garin said.

“My God, that’s a big lie, especially if you’re a former official of the government,” she added.

Garin said that instead of focusing on such matters which are natural, the attention should be diverted to whether prosecutors are doing their job.

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“We cannot just confuse the public.  Having a cold stems from a viral infection which has happened to everyone, and we should not mock a person who has a cold especially if he or she continues to work.  We should not also focus on saliva or whatever that is,” Garin said.

“Because the question there is whether what they are saying is correct, or are our lawyers and prosecutors lying, or are they fulfilling their duties.  Why go into such a discourse?  Again, we’re going back to fake news, we’re going back to diversions […] behavioral patterns that are not good but were built-up during the past administration, which we should now correct,” she added.

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Garin did not mention who the former official was, but a video spreading on social media sites like Facebook and Tiktok showed Partido Demokratiko Pilipino executive director and former Energy undersecretary Astra Pimentel-Naik saying that she pities members of the prosecution panel as they are supposedly showing signs of lying.

“I pity our prosecution panel because they have either too much saliva or show colds while they are (talking).  You know, that is a sign of lying, psychologically, scientifically, when a person lies it results in extra body excretions, and excessive saliva and colds are signs that you are under pressure,” Pimentel-Naik said.

READ: ICYMI: Sara Duterte impeachment trial Week 1 highlights

“So I know that they are under too much pressure.  You know, (members of the) prosecution panels (sic), to do away with pressure, stop making accusations against our Vice President Sara Duterte, because I am sure that she will be acquitted because she did nothing wrong,” she added.

But Garin noted that the cause of a runny nose is an infection, and excessive saliva may be caused by hunger or dehydration — both natural matters which should not be subject of jokes or personal attacks.

“If I have colds, is that something criminal?  Everyone has saliva because that’s part of digestion.  But if you fail to drink water since the morning because it’s not allowed, if you skip a meal because you are working, it’s a normal process,” Garin said.

Garin also did not mention who the specific prosecutors were accused of showing signs of lying, but on social media, people supportive of Duterte have mocked lead public prosecutor and Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro on the first day of the impeachment trial last Monday.

It was Luistro who delivered the opening statement for the prosecution side.

Similarly, Duterte supporters have poked fun at lawyer Amando Virgil Ligutan, a private counsel for the prosecution, who took centerstage on Tuesday with his examination of National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Senior Agent John Mark Calilung.

Calilung was called to the witness stand in relation to Article IV of the Articles of Impeachment — the ground which deals with Duterte’s grave threats — as he was the NBI personnel assigned to investigate the Vice President’s online press briefing last November 23, 2024.

In the said press briefing, Duterte was asked by a vlogger if she was concerned about her security.  In reply, Duterte urged people not to worry about her since she had contracted an assassin to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez if she herself gets killed.

The threat was prompted by Duterte’s rant over the detention of her chief-of-staff, Undersecretary Zuleika Lopez, at the House premises.

Lopez was detained after she was cited for contempt by the House committee on good government and public accountability, as she supposedly committed undue interference during the panel’s investigation of alleged CF misuse.

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As she was infuriated over Lopez’s detention and subsequent attempts to transfer her to the Correctional Institute for Women, Duterte badmouthed the Marcos couple and Romualdez.  At one point, Duterte was asked if she is concerned about her security; she replied by urging people not to worry since she had contracted an assassin to kill the three if she herself gets killed. /mr