Binay vows no favors in use of rented choppers

BINMALEY, Pangasinan – Vice President Jejomar Binay assured on Wednesday that his use of private jets and helicopters in waging a national campaign are not in exchange for favors.

United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) spokesperson Mon Ilagan said the camp of Binay vows to comply with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) rule on renting private jets.

Ilagan said, however, that he is not privy on the owners of the aircraft Binay would use for his campaign.

“We’ll all abide with the Comelec rules at yun ay ang pagrerenta ng mga choppers (and that is to rent choppers),” Ilagan said.

For his visit in vote-rich Pangasinan, Binay himself was on board a chopper when he arrived at the Lingayen landing zone around 10 a.m. Wednesday. Despite his use of a helicopter, Binay was late for the motorcade, which was originally scheduled at 8:30 a.m.

READ: Binay takes campaign to vote-rich Pangasinan

Ilagan said there are no favors involved in the use of the aircraft. He also said the owners pay the right taxes.

“Walang favor, walang arrangement. Ang UNA ang nag-ayos nito. Tinitiyak namin na ang may-ari ng chopper ay nagbabayad ng buwis,” Ilagan added.

(No favors, no arrangements. It was UNA which arranged for this. We ensure that the owner of the chopper pays taxes.)

The use of aircraft became an issue after presidential aspirant and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte bared that Liberal Party (LP) standard bearer Manuel “Mar” Roxas II had used a private jet lent to him by his businessman pal and mining magnate Francis Eric Gutierrez.

READ: Duterte rips Roxas’ use of mining firm’s plane

Gutierrez’s firm SR Metals Inc. (SMRI) was reportedly fined in 2007 for overextraction of minerals.

LP political affairs chairperson Edgar Erice was also a part-owner of the mining firm.

READ: Roxas: I paid for private jet’s rent

Roxas had said that he paid for the rent of the plane and that SMRI is multi-awarded for its good management.

Roxas had also said he may be friends with Gutierrez but at least he does not pay the rent for the plane with stolen taxpayers’ money. CDG