Vice Pres. Jejomar Binay INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
LUCENA CITY—Despite the continuous barrage of denunciation from political detractors of his family, Vice President Jejomar Binay said he would still want to “understand” their critics, in the spirit of Easter Sunday.
Binay said the public should also listen to his political enemies because under a democratic system, they have the right to speak out, even against him.
“Let us all understand them. Detractors are part of the true spirit of democracy,” Binay told reporters here on Saturday when asked for his Easter Sunday message to the critics of his clan.
The Vice President was the guest speaker at the Shine Philippines Leadership Conference by Team Ministries International held at Quezon Convention Center in this city.
Binay’s foes accused him of graft and corruption during his term as mayor of Makati City.
The Vice President’s son, incumbent Makati Mayor Junjun Binay, was likewise accused of committing the same crime of plunder of government money.
The son was slapped with six months suspension by the Ombudsman. The mayor is now embroiled in a legal battle with his vice mayor over the legitimacy of the suspension.
The Vice President brushed off the allegations hurled against him and his family as all “politically motivated.”
Binay was in Quezon province three times during the Holy Week. Two of his visits were part of his annual Lenten pilgrimages.
On Maundy Thursday morning, Binay travelled to Dolores town and joined the annual trek of Lenten pilgrims to Mount Banahaw, believed to be sacred by believers.
READ: VP Binay’s Holy Week destination: Mt. Banahaw
Binay paid a visit to Isabel Suarez, founder of the religious cult Suprema de la Iglesia del Ciudad Mystica de Dios in the village of Sta. Lucia located at the base of Banahaw.
Later in the afternoon, the Vice President motored to Lucban town at the opposite side of the mountain to also join the yearly visit of devotees to the “Kamay ni Hesus” shrine being administered by popular “healing” priest Fr. Joey Faller.
READ: VP Binay joins devotees in Lucban ‘healing church’
When asked if Binay asked for a special prayer from the charismatic healing priest, quoting the Vice President, Faller said: “Kung anuman ang kalooban ng Diyos ay maganap at makayanan niya ang hinihingi ng Diyos at mga tao (The will of the Lord will be done and that he will be able to do what God and the people ask of him.)”
Binay has long declared his intention to run for president in the 2016 elections as the standard bearer of his newly organized coalition party, the United Nationalist Alliance. RC