FIREWORKS
MANILA,
JULY 8, 2011 (MANILA TIMES) BY LLANESCA T. PANTI, SAMMY
MARTIN AND CRIS G. ODRONIA REPORTERS - LAWMAN-TURNED-LAWMAKER Sen. Panfilo
Lacson is going hammer and tongs after one "Jose Pidal" while erstwhile First
Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo brushes off the harangue.
Only the guilty would consider searching for the truth about corruption a
waste of time, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Wednesday as he refuted Negros
Occidental Rep. Ignacio Arroyo Jr.'s claim that reopening the "Jose Pidal"
account will be "a shameless and monumental waste of time."
"The search for truth about corruption and misuse and abuse of public funds
will never be a waste of time and resources. Only those who support such
shenanigans or are themselves guilty of committing those acts will say so,"
Lacson said.
"If going after crooks in government, especially those who take advantage of
public funds, is a waste of time, I'd still spend a lifetime pursuing it," he
added.
Earlier, Lacson said he may have evidence disproving the claim of Rep. Arroyo
– a brother of former First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo – that he owns the
"Jose Pidal" accounts.
But the former First Gentleman warned the public against believing
the accusations hurled on him by Sen. Panfilo Lacson on Wednesday.
Arroyo, husband of former President Gloria Arroyo, argued that Lacson's
allegations that the former First Gentleman and his wife forcibly sold P105
million worth of Light Police Operational Helicopters (LPOHs) to the PNP for the
security force's elite Special Action Force (SAF) 2009.
Mr. Arroyo, a lawyer, cited that the he or his wife never sold the
helicopters to the PNP. He, however, conceded that he owned the LTA Inc. which
had a Bolkow helicopter but it was not sold to the PNP but to a private company.
"The chopper issue is nothing but another sordid exercise to further malign
our name. The public should be wary of statements coming from a former fugitive
from justice," Arroyo said in a statement, referring to a time when Lacson went
into hiding for one year and 25 days when the Manila Regional Trial Court issued
a warrant of arrest against him for his alleged involvement in the murders of
publicist Salvador Bubby Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito.
"This is again part of the continuing persecution to mask the lackadaisical
performance of this administration to the detriment of the Filipino people," Mr.
Arroyo said.
Earlier, his brother and Rep. Ignacio "Iggy" Arroyo of Negros Occidental,
slammed Senator Lacson for seeking publicity at the expense of reviving the Jose
Pidal controversy.
The Negros lawmaker was referring to the incident in which Lacson accused the
ex-first Gentlemen Jose Miguel Arroyo of being the real Jose Pidal who is
involved in money laundering.
The Arroyo of Negros Occidental noted that he has already publicly admitted
during the previous administration that he was the Jose Pidal in Lacson's expose
and even submitted specimen signatures to prove his claims.
"Truth is not what it is but how the Senator [Lacson] wants it to be. The
plan to resurrect the 'Jose Pidal' controversy is a shameless and monumental
waste of time and resources. I hope Sen. Ping Lacson will be man enough and
civil enough to admit his mistake this time," the Negros legislator pointed out.
To bolster his claims, Ignacio cited that the opposition (Lacson's camp) at
that time even presented a supposed handwriting expert to dispute his argument
claim, only that the person floated by his critics turned out to be short of an
expert.
Another replay? "Why should Sen. Lacson waste time on another replay? The
only one who will benefit from a replay is Sen. Lacson himself through the
publicity it will generate, for media mileage," he added.
All the banks that had been linked to the Pidal controversy, Ignacio said,
likewise issued individual certifications that they had no account under that
name when Lacson made the revelations in the Senate.
"A Senate probe was conducted but no wrongdoing on our part was proven. No
other supposed expert was presented by the opposition. In other words, there was
nothing wrong, there was nothing illegal so there's no need to repeat everything
all over again," he argued.
Present evidence Malacanang on Wednesday said that it was expecting Sen.
Panfilo Lacson to present evidence on his allegation that the Arroyos sold
second-hand helicopters to the Philippine National Police in 2009.
Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that Malacanang is also waiting on the
revelations of Senator Lacson. "I think Sen. Lacson would require no prodding
from the executive branch," Lacierda said.
"As you all know, he's a crusader for good governance and when he mentioned
that he has evidence or documents proving his point, then we certainly expect
him to do so," he said during a Palace briefing.
Lacierda also said that the Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo will look into
the allegations of Lacson. "I would be confident that Secretary Robredo would
have ordered to look into these allegations of Sen. Ping Lacson," the spokesman
said.
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2011 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
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