Pimentel, Mr. Duterte’s key ally at the Senate, said he would “try to” have a casual meeting with De Lima, chair of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, on Monday. “I will talk to Senator De Lima and ask her what happened in the last hearing. Let the topics of the conversation come out from her,” said Pimentel in a text message early Friday evening. Pimentel had earlier said Matobato’s testimony “was not even relevant” to De Lima’s resolution that prompted her committee’s inquiry into the string of drug-related deaths under the President’s fierce antidrug war. The Senate President on Thursday rejected the committee’s request to place Matobato under the Senate’s protective custody, saying there was “no Senate rule to justify” the move.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer September 16, 2016 12:01 UTC