BY PRINCE GOLEZ
Manila Reporter
MANILA – Iloilo City’s Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago dismissed as “falsified” and “fictitious” the list of solons, prepared by whistleblower Benhur Luy, who allegedly channeled their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) to bogus non-government organizations.
The records of Luy showed that Santiago allocated, in late 2005, a part of her pork barrel to support coffee farmers in Cabadbaran, Agusan del Norte.
Santiago, who requested the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee to invite both Luy and Janet Lim Napoles to its inquiry, said she wants to “confront” these individuals regarding their accusations.
The Luy list, according to Santiago, has not been authenticated under the Rules of Court.
If Santiago were to be believed, the “Napoles gang of thieves” forged certain public documents and just used her name to “pad their in-house records.”
“The Luy list has no proof of attestation of any public document and no proof of authenticity of any private document. Thus, the Luy list contains no proof at all against me and others like me,” Santiago said.
Meanwhile, Sen. Loren Legarda and former senator Manny Villar, also in the Luy list, denied they were involved with Napoles.
“I do not know her and have never dealt with her personally or otherwise. I have never endorsed any non-government organization to benefit from my PDAF,” said Legarda.
She called the alleged Napoles list a “perjured lie” and is “actionable criminally against her and all those involved in this political smear campaign.”
For his part, Villar said the accusation is “totally baseless” and “unfair.”
“It seems like a new list is being drawn everyday. I hope the truth will come out, which the taxpaying public justly deserves,” Villar said./PN