Binay: I don’t have hidden wealth

Vice President Jejomar Binay. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

Vice President Jejomar Binay broke his silence on Thursday, saying he had no “hidden wealth” and that his money came from legitimate sources.

“Wala akong 242 accounts. Lima lang ang kasama sa freeze order na may pangalan ko. At sa limang accounts na ito, lahat ng pondo ay legal at hindi tagong yaman. Mali talaga ang AMLC,” Binay said in a statement.

(I don’t have 242 accounts. Only five accounts in the freeze order are under my name. The funds in these five accounts are legal and did not come from hidden wealth. The AMLC is wrong.)

AMLC is Anti-Money Laundering Council, which reportedly submitted a report to the   Court of Appeals indicating that the bank deposits under the Vice President’s name, alleged dummies and his son, Makati Mayor Jun-Jun Binay, have reached P11 billion since 2008.

READ: AMLC: Binay, allies deposits reach P11B

Citing the errors in the AMLC report, the Vice President said that his assets did not only come from his salary as a government official but also from his businesses.

“Sinasabi ng AMLC na ang source of funds ko ay ang sweldo ko lang kaya hindi tugma sa amounts ng mga bank accounts ko. Hindi totoo ‘yan,” he said.

(The AMLC said that the source of my funds only came from my salary, so it did not match the amount of money in my bank accounts. That is false.)

“Kasama sa accounts ko ang mga kinita at naipon ko bago pa ako sumama sa gobyerno. Mayroon din kaming negosyo na ilang dekada na. Nagbabayad din kami ng buwis. Pati ang legal campaign contributions na naka-report sa Comelec sabi ng AMLC ay tagong yaman. Mali talaga ang AMLC,” he added.

(Also included in my accounts were my earnings from transactions before I even entered government work. I’ve also had businesses for decades. I also pay my taxes. Even the legal campaign contributions which I reported to Comelec were tagged by AMLC as hidden wealth. But the AMLC is mistaken.)

Binay said the AMLC report was wrong because it also included accounts that were already closed.

“’Yong mga 237 accounts at transactions ng ibang tao, pinalalabas nila na sa akin. ‘Yan po ay hindi totoo at gawa-gawa lang. Mali talaga ang AMLC,” he said.

(They are making it appear that I own the other 237 accounts and transactions of other people. That is not true and just made up. The AMLC is really mistaken.)

The Vice President said the release of the AMLC report was part of a “conspiracy”  to  destroy him and derail his presidential bid in 2016.

READ: Binay says dirty politics behind raps

He said that it was also clear that the release of the AMLC report was in violation of the law, saying it was “one-sided” and did not include the explanation of the parties involved.

“Malinaw sa paglalabas ng report ng AMLC na handa ang mga kalaban ko na labagin ang batas para lang siraan ako (It is clear that with the release of the AMLC report that my rivals are open to bending the rules of just to destroy my reputation),” Binay added. IDL