The Senate blue ribbon committee on Tuesday cited former presidential economic adviser Michael Yang in contempt and moved to issue a warrant of arrest to compel him to attend the panel's hearing on the use of the government's COVID-19 funds.
Yang snubbed two sobpoenas to appear in before Senate investigations on his alleged links to Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp, which bagged over P8 billion in contracts for medical supplies last year.
"It seems that he (Yang) is in flight right now. We have been to his office, he's not there," said Senate blue ribbon panel chair Richard Gordon.
"He's been given all the chances and therefore, we are already in the process of making sure na umabot ito kay Senate President Tito Sotto who will sign the [warrant] orders," he added.
Yang used to serve as President Rodrigo Duterte's economic adviser. The President initially denied the appointment in 2018 but was later confirmed by his chief legal counsel Salvador Panelo.
In 2019, Malacañang said Yang was no longer an adviser to the President after a former police officer, Eduardo Acierto, linked the Chinese trader to illegal drugs.