‘Binay did not want to expose residency issue vs ‘friend’ Grace Poe’

Navotas Representative Toby Tiangco. SENATE POOL FILE PHOTO

Vice President Jejomar Binay allegedly opposed the move by a United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) stalwart to divulge the issue of residency of Senator Grace Poe which bars her from running for vice president or president in the 2016 elections.

In an interview aired over Radyo Inquirer on Wednesday, Navotas City Representative and UNA interim president Toby Tiangco said that Binay told him not to pursue his plan to expose the issue of residency against Poe because she was a “friend.”

“Nu’ng pinakita ko ito kay VP Binay, sabi niya, ‘Toby, huwag mo nang pansinin ‘yan kasi kaibigan naman natin si Grace. Sinabi niya ‘yan sa akin two months ago (When I showed this to VP Binay, he said, ‘Toby, don’t mind that because Grace is our friend.’ He told me that two months ago),” Tiangco said.

The Navotas solon revealed on Tuesday that Poe is not eligible to run as president or vice president because she fails to meet the 10-year residency requirement.

READ: Grace Poe not eligible for presidency, says UNA

He said that according to Poe’s certificate of candidacy in 2013, she said that she was a resident of the Philippines for six years and six months by election day in 2013. By election day in 2016, she would have been a resident of the country for nine years and six months only, thus failing to satisfy the 10-year residency requirement as provided in Sections 2 and 3 of Article VIII of the Constitution.

On the other hand, Tiangco denied that revealing the alleged failure of Poe to satisfy the residency requirement is a demolition job. He denied that Binay’s camp bears ill will against Poe because she signed the Senate blue ribbon subcommittee report recommending plunder raps against Binay and his alleged cohorts.

READ: Poe signs report vs Binay  

The lawmaker said it was Poe who first aired the call for honesty and revealing Poe’s 2013 certificate of candidacy is a challenge for the neophyte senator to be transparent.

“Wala hong samaan ng loob. Ni-raise niya ‘yung issue ng honesty so we want people to be honest also (We bear no ill will. She raised the issue of honesty so we want people to be honest also),” Tiangco said.

He also denied that the vice president asked Poe to become his running mate, saying that there was no such offer extended to the senator.

“Never naman na inoffer. Ang tanong kasi diyan ng media, kung kinokonsider ba si Grace Poe as vice presidential running mate. Siyempre ang sagot ni VP Binay doon, yes, kinokonsider. Ang nilabas na tuloy ng media, gusto ni VP Binay si Grace Poe na maging running mate,” Tiangco said. (It was never offered. The question of the media was ‘does VP Binay consider Poe as his vice presidential running mate?’ So VP Binay said ‘yes, we are considering her.’ The media then said that Binay wants Grace Poe to be his running mate,” Tiangco said.

READ: Why Poe can’t run with Binay

Binay was just being polite as he was already aware of Poe’s residency problem, he added.

Poe has earlier said that running with Binay “has never been an open door.” She said that after being dropped from Binay’s senatorial ticket in 2013, she said that she has maintained a civil relationship with the vice president.

She has since run and won as a guest candidate under the Liberal Party-led coalition. IDL