MANILA, Philippines — Senator Panfilo Lacson on Saturday dared COOP NATCCO Rep. Anthony Bravo to make all his amendments in the national budget public.
Lacson issued the challenge after Bravo had accused him of having secret amendments in the proposed 2019 P3.8 trillion budget.
“According to Senator [Loren] Legarda, she and Senator Lacson are in agreement that these congressional allocations are not pork. Now we are confused with Senator Lacson’s sudden turnaround,” Bravo said.
“Is his reversal because it was found that he also inserted secret amendments in the national budget?” Bravo added.
READ: House leader calls Lacson hypocrite for pork insertion claims
But Lacson said all his amendments are already made public.
“MR CONGRESSMAN, I ALREADY MADE PUBLIC ALL MY AMENDMENTS IN THE 2019 NATIONAL BUDGET. CAN YOU DO THE SAME?” Lacson said in a Twitter post.
“Is his (Lacson’s) reversal because it was found that he also inserted secret amendments in the national budget?” he (Cong Bravo) said.
MR CONGRESSMAN, I ALREADY MADE PUBLIC ALL MY AMENDMENTS IN THE 2019 NATIONAL BUDGET. CAN YOU DO THE SAME?— PING LACSON (@iampinglacson) February 2, 2019
Lacson also said that looks could be deceiving as he remembered how he first met Bravo in 2016.
“First time I met Cong Anthony Bravo in 2016, he came across as genuine, sincere and credible. I normally am a good judge of character, but looks and first instance demeanor can be deceiving sometimes,” he added in another Twitter post.
First time I met Cong Anthony Bravo in 2016, he came across as genuine, sincere and credible. I normally am a good judge of character, but looks and first instance demeanor can be deceiving sometimes.
— PING LACSON (@iampinglacson) February 2, 2019
Lacson earlier revealed that members of the House would be getting P160 million in “pork,” and not just P60 million, worth of projects in the House approved spending bill.
“If the [House conference] panel will not budge on the minimum standard P160 million earmarks for all their members, and the Senate agrees in the usual reciprocal consensus fashion, then I’m afraid we will have a pork-laden 2019 national budget,” Lacson said. /muf
READ: Ping: Pork per House member increased to P160 million