Binay: Punish the guilty in pork barrel scam

Vice President Jejomar Binay. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Jejomar Binay said Thursday everyone implicated in the pork barrel scam must be investigated and those found guilty must be punished.

“I’ll rather be emphatic in saying, whoever they may be—allies, relatives or foes—if the result of the investigation calls for their prosecution then they should be prosecuted,” Binay told reporters.

Binay refused, however, to take issue with Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who has been criticized for not releasing an affidavit submitted to her by Janet Lim Napoles, the alleged mastermind behind the diversion of allocations from the congressional Priority Development Assistance Fund.

“There is a demand for her to act on it as soon as possible… But there is a process that must be followed. That’s part of due process,” Binay said.

The vice president said the pork barrel scandal was now a circus.

“It has been muddled. What’s happening is like ‘Hello, Garci,’” he said, referring to the election rigging scandal involving former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Election Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano. “Do you remember there were two tapes then? Now there are three affidavits. But let’s watch.”

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