Sen. Loren Legarda on Friday confirmed that she filed a formal medical leave with the Senate from Aug. 3 to 5, following reports that she and her son, Batangas First District Rep. Leandro Leviste, had left the country.
In a statement, Legarda said she filed the leave ‘in accordance with Senate rules,’ after Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. confirmed with the media that Legarda’s office had informed the Senate of her absence.
‘I confirm that I filed a formal medical leave with the Senate covering August 3 to 5, 2026,’ Legarda said.
Bantug earlier told reporters that Legarda’s chief of staff sent a letter to his office on Aug. 3 informing the Senate that the senator would be on medical leave from Aug. 3 to 5.
The clarification came after National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag said that Legarda and Leviste had left the Philippines on Aug. 2.
According to Matibag, Leviste traveled to Hong Kong, while Legarda flew on a separate flight also via Hong Kong, with France as her final destination.
Legarda, for her part, asked the public not to draw conclusions linking her travel to the allegations against her which she again described as ‘false and baseless.’
She reiterated that these allegations ‘undeservedly besmirch a reputation that [she] built over decades of public service.’
Legarda and Leviste, along with former Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, are also facing a preliminary investigation by the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged graft and plunder involving supposed ghost solar projects worth more than P10 billion.
Earlier, Legarda has denied the allegations, saying they were ‘utterly false and baseless.