Binay on petition to oust Poe: ‘My conscience is clean’
VICE President Jejomar Binay on Thursday denied that he had a hand on the recent petition to unseat Senator Grace Poe over citizenship and residency issues.
Binay was reacting to insinuations that losing senatorial bet Rizalito David’s move to oust Poe from office was supposedly part of the opposition’s demolition job against Poe, who has been topping latest presidential and vice presidential surveys.
“Basta’t ako, lalo na ako, malinis ang konsensya ko diyan. Nalaman ko nga lang kagabi,” Binay said in an interview with reporters in Gerona, Tarlac. “Kahit ako’y natutulog… hindi ho ako talaga kasama diyan.”
David on Thursday filed a quo warranto petition before the Senate Electoral Tribunal after his failed first attempt on Wednesday because of lack of funds to pay the P50,000 filing fee. In his petition, David claimed that Poe is ineligible to remain in the Senate as she is a foundling and not a natural-born Filipino.
READ: Losing senatorial bet files petition to oust Grace | Case vs Poe fizzles out; P50K needed for it to sizzle
“Eh paano ito, eh ‘di lahat ng mga gagawin ko pagbibintangan ka? Wala namang logic yata ‘yun. Basta’t ito, sa deretsahang usapan wala akong kinalaman,” Binay added.
The Vice President said David’s petition would give Poe a chance to clear her name and explain her side in the proper platform.
“Naghain na sa hukuman ‘di tingnan ho natin ang proseso. Siyempre pasasagutin ang inihabla. Ako nga, napapag-usapan ‘yung habla, inihabla ko na ‘yung mga nagsasabing ayaw ko silang harapin. ‘Di ba ang sabi ko, magkita-kita tayo sa isang lugar na hindi ganyang bastusan. O ‘di ba naghabla na ako? Sagutin na lang nila,” he said.
Binay said the people would benefit most from the filing of the petition, adding that Poe has a big roadblock ahead of her.
“Para once and for all mawala na ‘yung issue. Dapat, ayan magkapaliwanagan na. ‘Yun lang, sa aking karanasan bilang abogado naman ako, nag-practice ako, mahirap na kaso ang kalaban mo bukod nito,” he said. “The best way, the only way by which you can get out ‘yung consequence of a document is to question the existence of the document whether it’s genuine or not.”
A relieved Poe on Thursday welcomed the filing of the ouster petition. She said it would give her a chance to answer the questions on her citizenship and residency.
“It is an opportunity for the truth to come out and for this issue to be resolved once and for all,” Poe said. “I assure the 20 million plus fellow Filipinos who voted for me, as well as the rest of the country, that their confidence in me is not misplaced. I remain truthful to our countrymen. I am a Filipino by birth, abode and choice.”
READ: Grace Poe: ‘I am Filipino by birth, abode and choice’
