Tuason, Luy ‘talk like long-lost friends’

MANILA, Philippines—Benhur Luy and Ruby Tuason on Monday corroborated each other’s statements on how businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles allegedly  conspired with Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada to engineer the purported P10-billion pork barrel racket, according to lawyer Levito Baligod.

“They talked like long-lost friends and confirmed each other’s statements and transactions,” Baligod said.

He said that during a five-hour meeting at the National Bureau of Investigation, the two whistle-blowers also discussed the amount received by Enrile’s chief of staff, Jessica Lucila “Gigi” Reyes, for her boss and Estrada.

The lawyer said that both Luy and Tuason kept records of their respective transactions with the senators.

Tuason said the commission she handed to Reyes for using Enrile’s Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) was P77 million for the period 2007-2009, while Estrada’s was P35 million, Baligod said.

Luy had the same figure for the alleged Enrile commissions but his record for the money he gave Estrada was only P9 million. Baligod said this was because Estrada allegedly went directly to Napoles or used conduits.

Based on the records of the two witnesses, the first transaction by Tuason involving Enrile’s PDAF was P31.9 million coursed through the Department of Agriculture using Napoles’ bogus nongovernment organization—People’s Organization for Progress and Development Foundation (POPDF)—with special allotment release order No. BMB-E-04-04-068, dated Dec. 14, 2004.

Baligod also said that records kept by Tuason on the amount she had given Estrada was smaller because the senator used his former staff, Pauline Labayen, to collect his purported payoff.

Estrada also used as conduit for Napoles actor Mat Ranillo, the lawyer for the whistle-blowers said.

Baligod said that during the meeting at the NBI Special Task Force office, Tuason and Luy spoke about how the kickbacks were collected by Reyes for Enrile and Estrada.

In an interview after the meeting, Tuason said she had no regrets in coming out and would face any investigation, including the Senate hearing on Thursday.

Luy, who also talked to reporters, said he was happy about Tuason’s coming out and glad that his statements had been corroborated.

Luy is a former aide of Napoles, who was detained after she allegedly held him captive following threats he would expose her.

Tuason, a socialite, was said to have introduced Napoles to the lawmakers and then worked for the businesswoman. Tuason fled to the United States after the scandal broke out. She returned on Friday after expressing willingness to become state witness. She said she was bothered by her conscience.

Also on Monday, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima  said she was saddened that Vice President Jejomar Binay was belittling evidence that investigators had gathered against Enrile and Estrada.

“Shouldn’t we be interested in this case? Shouldn’t we hope and pray that something happens with this case and that we should be supported, encouraged and not to be laughed at or being scoffed at?” De Lima told reporters.

At the weekend, Binay described as a “dud” evidence given by Tuason to De Lima.

On Monday, Binay’s spokesman, Joey Salgado, said the presumption of innocence was enshrined in the Constitution. He said that the two senators were allies of the Vice President in the United Nationalist Alliance was purely coincidental.

Binay feels, Salgado said, that courts decide who qualifies as a state witness in criminal cases. “Any declaration that a person will be a state witness prior to approval of the court would be premature,” he said.

Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, leader of the independent bloc in the House of Representatives, urged De Lima to stop calling Tuason’s disclosures as “slam dunk” evidence.

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