Binay: To be or not to be

MANILA, Philippines–He showed up early before the Cabinet meeting in Malacañang on Wednesday. But will he appear Thursday morning at the Senate blue ribbon committee hearing to respond to allegations that he got kickbacks from infrastructure projects in Makati and amassed ill-gotten wealth when he was its mayor?

Vice President Jejomar Binay on Wednesday found himself face to face with President Aquino and some of the administration officials allegedly plotting to derail his own presidential run in 2016.

The occasion was the Cabinet meeting of nearly seven hours called by the President to map out specific strategies for the rehabilitation of communities ravaged by Super Typhoon “Yolanda” nearly a year ago.

Seated right across from the President in Malacañang’s Aguinaldo State Dining Room, Binay “never spoke” even if the meeting tackled housing for Yolanda victims, the Inquirer learned.

Binay heads the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, but at the Cabinet meeting it was Chito Cruz of the National Housing Authority who did most of the talking.

‘Not to be trusted’

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, one of Binay’s harshest critics, said the Vice President would show himself to be untrustworthy if he failed to appear at the Senate blue ribbon committee hearing on Thursday scheduled for his appearance alone, and where he would be asked to respond to corruption allegations against him.

Trillanes noted that the committee chair, Sen. Teofisto Guingona III, called the hearing after Binay’s spokesperson had said he might appear at the Senate if the invitation came from the mother blue ribbon committee and not from the subcommittee, which is leading the inquiry into alleged anomalies in Makati City where Binay served as mayor for a long time.

“If he fails to show up, that means he’s not to be trusted,” he said in a press briefing.

As of Wednesday afternoon, there was no official word from Binay if he would attend the Senate hearing.

Trillanes also said the hearing was an opportunity for Binay to explain his side. He said it was not just him that the Vice President needed to convince, but the people.

Trillanes said that if Binay decided to appear in the Senate, he should prepare for a lengthy grilling. Binay could be answering questions for six hours, he said.

“He should clear his schedule. He should cancel his appointments because he has a lot to explain,” the senator said.

Asked about concerns from Binay’s camp that Guingona may be unable to control the senators joining the hearing, Trillanes said there was no need to control him.

“I’m not a wild animal. I won’t bite him and I can promise him that. But my questions would probably bite him,” he said.

Tension palpable

“The tension” was palpable, the Inquirer was told by Cabinet officials who were in attendance, considering that earlier this week, Aquino lashed out at Binay for attacking his administration in the course of defending himself from corruption allegations.

“You openly attack some of the Cabinet secretaries, how can you expect that there won’t be any tension? But it’s all unsaid,” said one official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Also in the meeting were Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, who was linked by Binay to the so-called “Oplan Stop Nognog 2016” allegedly aimed at derailing the Vice President’s candidacy in the 2016 presidential election, and Cabinet officials identified with Roxas’ “Balay” faction in the Palace.

VP’s criticisms

Among them was Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, whose resignation over the Disbursement Acceleration Program should have been accepted by the President, Binay once said.

Binay earlier criticized the administration over “a [looming] power crisis, the rising prices of oil and other commodities, the rampant crimes plaguing the country, the hellish traffic jams, unsafe MRT and LRT, the recurrent flooding and the wrath of nature that we must all prepare for.”

But he later claimed that he was referring to administration senators investigating his alleged corruption, not Aquino in particular. Aquino didn’t seem to buy the distinction and said on Monday: “If he thinks we are going in the wrong direction, he’s free to leave.”

Binay arrived a few minutes early for the 10 a.m. Cabinet meeting and went around the State Dining Room for small talk with select Cabinet officials, “perhaps, his way of showing that he’s a ‘team player,’” one source said. He left around 3:30 p.m., about an hour before the meeting was adjourned.

After he was told by Aquino that he was “free to leave” the Cabinet, Binay said he had “the highest respect for President Aquino and I will continue to be a team player.”

In a huddle

Media footage showed Binay in a huddle with Rehabilitation Secretary Panfilo Lacson, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa and Director General Joel Villanueva of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) before Aquino arrived.

At one point, the Vice President told Villanueva he didn’t believe the Tesda chief was part of the alleged anti-Binay campaign. Someone overheard the conversation and joked that Villanueva was actually the “mastermind.”

Shaking hands

Binay was also seen shaking hands with Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and chatting with Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, and Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma. Binay stayed on for at least five hours, his longest in a Cabinet meeting, an official recalled.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda downplayed the supposed tension during the meeting, saying it was focused on the tasks at hand. “All the Cabinet secretaries, including the Vice President, were attentive to the discussion,” he told reporters.

Aquino was updated on the implementation of the Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Plan for areas devastated by Yolanda. Lacierda said the meeting also “laid out priority programs and projects for 2015.”

Senate hearing

The President is set to fly to Guiuan, Samar province, on Friday, the eve of the first anniversary of Yolanda.

At 9 a.m. Thursday, the Senate blue ribbon committee is expecting Binay at its hearing to respond to mounting charges of corruption and ill-gotten wealth.

Sen. Teofisto Guingona III, chair of the committee, said on Tuesday that the Vice President could not just read a statement but must take questions, too, if he appeared before the committee.

Guingona assured Binay of fair treatment, respect and ample time to air his side to the charges.

The subcommittee has scheduled the resumption of its hearing on the allegedly overpriced P2.28-billion Makati City Hall Building II at 10 a.m., also Thursday.

If the Vice President does not show up at the blue ribbon committee, the subcommittee will push through with its hearing, according to its chair, Sen. Koko Pimentel.

No decision yet

Trillanes said more evidence on Binay’s alleged corruption, as well as on alleged irregularities surrounding the construction of the Makati Science High School building, were expected to be tackled.

There was no word on Wednesday night from the Binay camp if the Vice President had decided to attend the Senate hearing on Thursday.

Binay’s spokesman Joey Salgado said Binay conferred with his advisers on whether he would accept the Senate hearing.

But Salgado did not respond to calls and text messages of the Inquirer following up on the outcome of Binay’s meeting with his advisers.

The Inquirer also tried but failed to reach by phone Cavite Gov. Jonvic Remulla, Binay’s spokesman for political concerns.–With a report from Christine O. Avendaño

 

RELATED STORIES

Aquino meets Binay, Cabinet on Yolanda rehab implementation

Trillanes urges Binay to attend Senate probe: ‘I won’t bite him, I promise’