Palace clueless on Leviste’s claims vs Recto critics

TOKYO, Japan — Palace press officer Claire Castro on Wednesday said she has no idea where Batangas Rep. Leandro Legarda Leviste got his information that “many other individuals” from the administration are behind the “attacks” against Executive Secretary Ralph Recto.

Leviste, in a message to reporters on Tuesday, asked Recto to check inside the administration for critics instead of pointing fingers after the Palace official insinuated that it could be the opposition or Leviste himself who is the mastermind behind the fresh plunder complaints against him.

READ: Leviste to Recto: Look inside administration for critics, not opposition

“We have nothing to do with it, and we know nothing about where Congressman Leviste is coming from,” Castro said in a briefing on the sidelines of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s state visit here.

The complaint was filed by Dr. Tony Leachon early Monday, alleging that Recto “violated the Constitution and betrayed the people’s right to health” when he ordered the transfer of P60 billion from the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. to the national treasury.

Leachon also claimed that the transfer of P107 billion from the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. to the state coffers weakened safeguards meant to protect depositors and eroded public trust in financial institutions.

When asked who could possibly be the mastermind of this, Recto said, “There are many question marks… We can allege that possibly the opposition is included, for example, Lean Leviste, allegedly.”

Recto asserted that the complaint has no legal basis and dismissed it as a mere “harassment case.” /das