Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste has been accused of harassing then Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Undersecretary Catalina Cabral in an incident said to have occurred inside her office, according to a post circulating on social media.
In a Reddit post shared on the forum r/DPWHEngineersPH, user u/Unlucky-Love5132 claimed that Leviste allegedly entered Cabral’s office on the night before a congressional hearing and forcibly took documents from her hands.
The post has resurfaced on social media following the recently reported death of Cabral, who reportedly fell into a ravine along Kennon Road on Thursday. Cabral’s identity was confirmed through a DNA test, according to the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
Cabral had earlier resigned after she was implicated in the flood control scandal.
“Totoo po ito — nangyari mismo sa opisina ni Usec. Cabral gabi bago ang hearing,” the Reddit user said, adding that the lawmaker allegedly acted aggressively and forcibly took documents from Cabral, resulting in a paper cut on her finger.
The post further claimed that Cabral was seen wearing a bandage on her finger during the hearing the following day, which the user alleged was due to the incident and not a simple accident.
“Kaya noong sumunod na araw sa hearing, mapapansin niyo nakabenda ang kanyang daliri — hindi dahil sa simpleng aksidente, kundi dahil mismo sa insidente sa loob ng kanyang sariling opisina,” the user claimed.
The Reddit user said it was troubling for an elected official to allegedly barge into the office of a sitting government official and forcibly take documents to the point of causing injury.
“Nakakagulat at nakakaalarma na ganito ang ugali ng isang halal na opisyal – pumapasok sa opisina ng isang undersecretary at pilit inaagaw ang dokumento, to the point na nasaktan pa ang opisyal,” it said.
