De Lima laments being portrayed as ‘paid sex worker’

Senator Leila de Lima blasted her critics on Tuesday for making her appear like a “paid sex worker” and a “sexually prolific woman” with their insinuations that convicted drug lord Jaybee Sebastian was her lover.

“Anong insinuation nila, lover kami ni Jaybee Sebastian (What are they insinuating, that Jaybee Sebastian and I are lovers)? They’re making me appear as if I’m now a sex worker, a paid sex worker?” De Lima told reporters, saying that the insinuation was one of the big lies being thrown at her.

She also branded President Rodrigo Duterte’s reported statement that she had spent hours in the “kubol” of Sebastian at the New Bilibid Prison.

READ: Duterte: De Lima will surely be jailed

De Lima earlier admitted that the Aquino government used Sebastian as an asset when she was still the Justice Secretary.

READ: De Lima says Sebastian a gov’t asset, OK if he testifies

“That is a big lie, staying there for several hours?” the lady senator said.

“So why is the President so fixated on my sexual life. They are making me appear that I am a sexually prolific woman. Anong gusto niya, wala po akong sexual life (What does he want, for me to have no sexual life)? But I totally deny that —that insinuation that there’s something between me and (Sebastian),” she added.

De Lima suspected that this supposed love angle between her and the convicted criminal is now being floated by the President because he could not convince Sebastian to testify against her.

In fact, she said, she had been getting A1 information that her detractors were also trying to convince even the wife of Sebastian to testify against her.

“Since hindi pa rin siya napipilit (he hasn’t been convinced yet), at least I think as of yesterday before na naman we heard all those barrage of foul things from the mouth of Mr. President, kaya ganyan na naman ang pinapalabas nila (they’re trying to make it appear that way). So so so foul,” De Lima said. CDG/rga