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Erap keeps mum on bribery issue
SAN CARLOS CITY, Negros Occidental – "Ayaw ko nang patulan yan dahil deniable naman (I don't want to discuss it because it's deniable)."
This was former President Joseph Estrada's reaction to Sen. Richard Gordon's revelation that an emissary of Sen. Manny Villar tried to bribe him with money and a Cabinet position if he backed out of the race.
Gordon's revelation came exactly one week after Estrada told reporters that a presidential rival also offered to reimburse his campaign expenses if he backed out of the presidential election. While Estrada did not name names, senatorial bet JV Bautista said it was most likely Villar who offered the bribe to Estrada.
The former president earlier said emissaries of the presidential candidate approached him several times about the offer. He said, however, that the offers stopped after he revealed the bribe try to the media. "Tumigil na din naman sila pagkatapos kong sabihin yun," he said.
During Tuesday's sortie at San Carlos City auditorium, Estrada told reporters that he is now focusing on his campaign, which will take him from Bacolod City in Negros Occidental to Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental. He also paid a courtesy call to Bishop Jose Advincula of San Carlos City during his visit.
Estrada said he is against the passage of the reproductive health bill despite the burgeoning population problem affecting the country. He said, however, that the government should educate women on how to make intelligent choices in planning their families.
Failure of elections to lead to revolution
Estrada, meanwhile, warned that a failure of elections as a result of the energy crisis could lead to an uprising among voters.
The former president said the people should pray that the energy crisis would be resolved soon before the May 10 elections. He explained that many people have been longing for the elections, which would usher in a new set of government leaders.
Estrada, however, rejected a proposal of giving emergency powers to President Arroyo to handle the energy situation, saying that emergency powers are prone to abuse.
He added, though, that he is amenable to conditional emergency powers for Malacañang in which the bidding process will not be neglected or set aside "to maintain the checks and balances in government’s transactions."
source: Jorge Cariño, ABS-CBN News
03/02/2010 10:44 PM
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