DETAINED Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. on Sunday maintained that he and his wife, actress and Cavite 2nd district Representative Lani Mercado, do not have concealed assets under aliases.
In a statement, Revilla said that the properties under their birth names were declared in their Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).
Revilla was born with the name Jose Mari Bautista while Mercado was born Jesusa Hernandez.
“All our aliases are legal and we have no concealed assets. Kung balak namin itago ang mga ito, bakit namin ilalagay sa SALN? Konting isip-isip naman. Common sense lang (If we intend to hide these properties, why would we put it in our SALN? All I am asking is a little common sense here),” he said.
The senator assailed the prosecution for making it appear that they deliberately registered their properties under different names.
“Palibhasa, ang intensyon ay manira, kaya ganyan na lang ang ipinalalabas nila sa taumbayan (Their intention is to taint our reputations in the eyes of the people),” Revilla lamented.
The lawmaker claimed that all of the accounts, which they registered under their birth names, were mostly acquired in 1995 before they assumed public office and before 2003 where he legally changed his name to “Ramon Revilla Jr.”
On July 10, Sandiganbayan’s first division granted the request of the prosecution to include assets registered under the aliases of Revilla to its earlier freeze order issued last Feb. 5. The aliases of Revilla included in the writ of attachment were: Revilla Jr. Ramon, Bong, Jose Marie M. Bautista, Jose Marie Mortel Bautista, Ramon Bong Jr. Bautista, Ramon Bong Bautista, and Bautista Jose Maria.
Also included were joint properties of the couple registered under Mercado’s names: Mercado Lani Hernandez, Bautista Jesusa Victoria, Jesusa Victoria H. Bautista and Lani Mercado Revilla.
The senator, who is detained for his alleged involvement in the pork barrel scam, said that they “did not take anything from the government and the Filipino people.”
“Makikita naman na lahat ng aking mga naipundar ay bunga ng aking pagsisikap bilang artista, gayundin ng aking asawa. (The properties we have acquired are from our earnings as actors) Everything is justified,” Revilla further said.
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