Vice President Jejomar Binay (left) and Former Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II. INQUIRER FILE PHOTOS
Vice President Jejomar Binay lashed back at the Liberal Party standard-bearer Mar Roxas after the called him a thief.
During a campaign sortie in Mandaue city, Cebu, Roxas said under a Binay presidency, the country would be worse off because Binay would steal from the country’s coffers like what he did when he was mayor in Makati.
READ: Roxas tells Binay: Spare PH from your thievery
Binay was indicted for graft by the Ombudsman for alleged rigging in the procurement for the Makati City Hall Building II.
“Sabi mo Vice President Binay, gagawin mo sa Pilipinas kung ano ang ginawa mo sa Makati. Naku, ‘wag naman. Kawawa naman ang Pilipinas kung nanakawan mo ang Pilipinas tulad nang pagnanakaw mo sa Makati. ‘Yung mga mahihirap sa Pilipinas ay lalo pang hihirap. ‘Wag naman po sana. Maraming salamat,” Roxas said of Binay.
(Vice President Binay, you said that you will do for the Philippines what you did in Makati. I hope not. The entire country will be in a story state if you will just steal from it the way you stole from Makati. Poor Filipinos will only become poorer. I hope this does not happen. Thank you!)
In an interview with reporters in Meycauayan, Bulacan on Friday, Binay denied any truth to Roxas’ aclaim, calling it as baseless allegations.
Binay said Roxas doesn’t seem to get tired of attacking him when Binay does not do the same for Roxas.
Binay said he also criticizes Roxas for his performance as Transportation secretary but he does not throw allegations against Roxas.
“Alam mo, si Mr. Roxas ayaw n’ya tumigil nang bintang nang bintang. Itong bintang uulitin ko, Mr. Roxas a, hindi ho ‘yan, hindi ho, wala hong k’wan ‘yan,” Binay said.
(Mr. Roxas can’t seem to stop hurling allegations against me. I will repeat, Mr. Roxas, these allegations have no (basis).)
Binay said he finds it wrong to throw allegations to destroy a person’s reputation.
“E ikaw pagbibintangan din kita o ang dami mo ring … sa DOTC, meron kang pirma, pero ayaw kong pagbintangan (ka) kasi mali ‘yung magbintang para makasira lamang sa pagkatao ng isang tao,” Binay said.
(I can also accuse you of signing documents at the DOTC, but I won’t because it’s wrong to accuse someone just so you can destroy that person’s reputation.)
In his speech during his campaign sortie in San Rafael, Bulacan on Thursday, Binay made fun of Roxas’ dismal ratings while the opposition candidate is a frontrunner.
READ: Binay chides Roxas for being fourth placer in surveys
“Nagsimula ako na two percent, ‘yung kalaban ko noon na kalaban ko rin ngayon… tinalo ko. Paano ka naman sasama sa ganun? Ang dapat kasama sa panalo, hindi tayo pwedeng sumama sa talo,” Binay said, rousing cheers from the audience.
((When I ran for vice president), I started at two percent but I beat my opponent then who is also my opponent now. Why would you go for that? Join a winner; don’t go for a loser.) IDL