Palace, LP deny Binay camp raps

Malacañang and the ruling Liberal Party (LP) on Wednesday washed their hands of the Senate arrest order for the alleged dummies of Vice President Jejomar Binay.

“It’s not politics and to [reduce] everything as plain politics is a bit unfair to the institution and this is an institution of the legislative department,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said on Wednesday.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said in a text message to the Inquirer that the issuance of the arrest orders was but “the logical consequence of the certifications made by the AMLC (Anti-Money Laundering Council) about the Binays’ questionable bank accounts and transactions and the freeze ordered by the Court of Appeals.”

The LP stalwart said the arrest order and the freeze order were “acts from two independent institutions [that] vindicate the need for and value of the Senate hearings.”

“They debunk the allegations of the Binay camp that the serious charges being investigated by the Senate are groundless and are only meant for political harassment. With these damning revelations and the previous refusal of those subject to arrest orders to attend the hearings, the Senate now feels duty-bound to compel their attendance,” Abad added.

Is politics involved in the Binays’ woes?

“Certainly not,” Abad said.

He stressed that the Senate and the Court of Appeals were “public institutions performing their respective mandates under the Constitution.”

“The accountability of public officials and the promotion of the rule of law are uppermost in their mandates. To characterize their official actions as motivated purely by partisanship can only serve to unduly undermine these institutions,” Abad said.

Binay’s spokesman, Rico Quicho, alleged that the Aquino administration and the LP were behind the Senate’s order to arrest and detain 14 aides and business associates of the Vice President for snubbing the hearings on the corruption allegations against him.

Quicho said it was apparent that the LP wanted to “destroy its formidable rival in the 2016 elections.”

Binay has announced that he will seek the presidency next year and has consistently topped presidential surveys.–Nikko Dizon