Manila: Former president Gloria Arroyo, who is now a Congresswoman, deferred going to Singapore for medical treatment yesterday, and instead filed contempt of court charges against Justice Secretary Leila de Lima for defying a Supreme Court ruling that had allowed her to leave on Tuesday.
"She has decided not to go [for her appointment with a doctor in Singapore]. She is not feeling well; she knows how she feels. We will wait when she feels better. Due to fluctuating blood pressure, her doctors told her to rest at the St Luke's Medical Centre in suburban Taguig," said her spokesperson Elena Bautista-Horn.
"On Wednesday morning she was walking around the room but as of Wednesday midnight she had to lie down due to the intravenous connections. She is now in bed," she said.
"Once her blood pressure stabilises, there is a good chance we will consider having her travel on Friday… Once we get a confirmation we would want to leave immediately. We will stand by Arroyo's constitutional right to travel," she said.
Former Solicitor-General Estelito Mendoza, filed the contempt charges, on behalf of Arroyo, against de Lima, adding that her directive to immigration officials to prevent the Arroyos from leaving last Tuesday, was a "defiance of a lawful order".
A contempt of court offence carries a fine of up to P30,000 (Dh2,500) or imprisonment of up to six months, or both.
Analysts said the justice secretary's defiance has allowed the executive and judiciary to clash, adding this could lead to constitutional crisis.
Many opinion writers said the justice secretary was only following President Benigno Aquino's order who has been pressured to file charges against the Arroyos.
If proven, this could be questioned as Aquino's impeachable act, said Arroyos allies.
The former first couple has pending complaints of alleged electoral fraud and plunder filed against them at the justice department.
Today, the Supreme Court will hold an en banc session for the oral argument on the motion for reconsideration filed by the government's lawyer, the Office of the Solicitor General, on Wednesday.
Explaining to reporters what she did earlier, de Lima said, "Since there is a motion for reconsideration, the high court's TRO (temporary restraining order) should not yet be implemented."
