Groups cry for Aquino’s head after SC ruling vs DAP

Bayan Secretary General Renato Reyes Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—With the Supreme Court’s decision against Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP), various groups are now calling for President Benigno Aquino’s head as well as those responsible for DAP.

“It is a blow to presidential lump sum and discretionary spending or presidential pork under [President Benigno] Aquino [III]. The big challenge now is accountability. We will pursue this for sure. Aquino and [Budget Secretary Butch] Abad should be answerable to the people,” Bayan Secretary-General Renato Reyes Jr. told reporters.

Bayan, together with other groups trooped, to the Supreme Court Tuesday morning to await the Supreme Court’s announcement on whether DAP is illegal or not. Bayan is one of the petitioners in this case.

Kabataan partylist said the high court’s ruling on DAP “is a solid ground for culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust, both of which are impeachable offense.”

The Scrap Pork Network through lawyer Argee Guevarra said Malacañang’s silence on the high court’s DAP ruling is a sign of guilt.

“The Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling on DAP is consistent with its declaration of the unconstitutionality of PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) and should be considered a milestone in the fight against the pork barrel system,” Guevarra said.

“The Palace ‘no comment’ on this development should be considered by the public as a tacit admission of guilt over the President’s and DBM (Department of Budget and Management) Secretary Abad’s involvement in government’s novel mechanism for malversation to generate funds to bribe senators during the impeachment of Chief Justice [Renato] Corona,” he added.

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