Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Senate Majority Leader Alan Cayetano said Friday that the alleged list given by pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Napoles should be made public by Justice Secretary Leila De Lima.
Cayetano said in a press conference that if the list is not published it will only cause speculations that certain names will be removed from it.
More than a dozen former and incumbent senators have been implicated in the P10-billion pork barrel scam in disclosures made by De Lima as well as former senator and now rehabilitation czar Panfilo Lacson.
Cayetano denied he has any involvement with Napoles or in the diversion of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) to non-government organizations (NGOs) linked to Napoles.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said in a previous news conference that the list should be backed up by documentary evidence.
“If the list is supported by credible documentary evidence, please go ahead. But if it’s just a list, perhaps it would be better if we just take care of the institution of the Senate,” Drilon said.
“There are many text messages saying my name is among those of 19 senators, who Janet Napoles has implicated in the pork barrel scam. Well, I guess they are at it again. These are the black propaganda operators who were doing the same thing last year. They have been tapped to muddle the issue by spreading lies and baseless accusations,” he said.
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