Lawyer: Teves in pain, needs ‘major surgery’
Expelled House lawmaker Arnolfo Teves Jr. was rushed to a public hospital on Tuesday morning due to severe stomach pains and doctors have recommended that he undergo a “major surgery” procedure, according to his lawyer Ferdinand Topacio.
“After being examined at a government hospital this morning until mid-afternoon, the doctors therein have decided that Mr. Teves’ condition requires major surgery in another hospital with additional equipment and facilities,” Topacio told reporters in a Viber message. He declined to disclose the medical diagnosis for the former Negros Oriental representative.
Topacio said that in line with the official protocol of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) for “serious emergency cases,” the doctors at the public hospital recommended that Teves be transferred to St. Luke’s Medical Center-Global City in Taguig.
The expelled congressman who is currently detained at the Metro Manila District Jail-Annex 2 in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City, started experiencing stomach pains around 7 p.m. on Monday. He received treatment and medication from the jail nurse.
Citing information from the BJMP, Topacio said that Teves’ symptoms worsened on Tuesday morning, prompting the jail physician to advise the warden to bring him to the nearest government hospital.
“Our client was buckling over due to pain, and according to him, he was practically on his knees, requesting to be brought to a hospital for treatment, but BJMP personnel could not grant said request due to ‘protocol,’” Topacio said.
Courts informed
The lawyer added that all courts where Teves has pending cases have been informed of his condition.
Teves is facing multiple criminal charges for allegedly masterminding the assassination of his political rival, former Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo, in a daytime attack that killed nine others in March 2023.
He also faces separate charges before a Manila court in connection with the killings of three individuals between March and June 2019.
The charges are in addition to a case for illegal possession of firearms and explosives after high-powered weapons and ammunition were discovered in his family’s compound.
At the time Degamo was killed, Teves was on medical leave in the United States and defied House orders for him to come home. After two years of evading authorities and seeking refuge in Timor-Leste, he was finally deported to Manila on May 29 after the Timorese government tagged him as an undocumented alien facing multiple criminal complaints and a threat to its national security and public interest.
Upon his return, Teves was detained at the National Bureau of Investigation’s detention facility within the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City until a Manila court handling the Degamo case on June 9 ordered his transfer to the BJMP’s custody, specifically to the Metro Manila District Jail Annex 2.
