MANILA, Philippines – Former president and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal Arroyo will be spending Christmas and New Year at her home in Quezon City.
Arroyo, who remains under hospital arrest at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center, had requested for furloughs this holiday season.
On Tuesday, December 8, the Supreme Court granted Arroyo’s request, allowing her to stay in her La Vista Subdivision residence during the following periods:
- December 23, 2015 (8 am) to December 26, 2015 (5 pm)
- December 30, 2015 (8 am) to January 2, 2016 (5 pm)
Meanwhile, the high court also ordered the Office of the Solicitor General to comment on Arroyo’s urgent motion for house arrest within 20 days.
The former president is detained over a plunder case stemming from the alleged misuse of P365.9 million in Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) funds from 2008 to 2010.
Her plunder trial is on hold until February 2016, following a Supreme Court ruling.
Arroyo's camp has cited the findings of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which said that her detention "violates international law." – Rappler.com