Former Negros Oriental representative Jing Paras said he was preparing impeachment raps against Comelec head Andres Bautista over the P1 billion in unexplained wealth which the wife of the elections chair is alleging against him. INQUIRER.NET FILE / MARC JAYSON CAYABYAB
A former lawmaker bared on Monday his plan to file an impeachment complaint against Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chair Andres “Andy” Bautista over the latter’s alleged P1 billion in unexplained wealth claimed by his wife, Patricia.
“Itong Comelec ang isa sa bastion ng ating demokrasya. Yun ang nagbibigay integridad sa mga pinipili natin sa pamahalaan,” former Negros Oriental Rep. Jacinto “Jing” Paras said in an interview over dzIQ Radyo Inquirer 990’s “Good Morning Inquirer.”
(Comelec is one of the bastions of our democracy. It gives integrity to the officials we elect to government.)
“Kung kaduda-duda ang nagpapalakad ng ating institusyon, kaduda-duda din yung mga opisyal na hinalal natin. Karapat-dapat lang na masuri ito sa Kongreso,” he added, saying that he would file the case before Congress.
(If the person heading our institution is questionable, the people we elected are also questionable. The Congress should definitely look into it.)
The former congressman also pointed out that the alleged documents showing Bautista’s “mind-boggling” wealth had a “certain degree of truthfulness.”
“There is a certain degree of truthfulness (to the documents) especially coming from the spouse (Patricia),” Paras said.
“Feeling ko sa mind-boggling na halaga ng pagmamay-ari (ni Bautista), kung ang SALN (statement of assets, liabilities and net worth) nya ay hanggang doon lang pero mahigit pa ang ari-ariang hindi naideklara. Karapat-dapat na ang mga Pilipino ay manindigan,” he added.
(I feel that if his SALN does not reflect his mind-boggling wealth, the Filipino people should stand their ground.)
Bautista has been denying these allegations, saying that he is willing to be investigated.
Meanwhile, Paras pointed out the similarity of the election chief’s case with that of former Chief Justice Renato Corona. Corona was impeached for nondisclosure of his assets following months-long impeachment trial in 2012. He later died from cardiac arrest on April 30, 2016.
“Parehong pareho sa kaso ni Chief Justice Corona kasi yung SALN din (ang issue),” Paras said.
(It’s the same with Chief Justice Corona’s case because the issue is also the SALN.)
Paras confirmed that he already had people in the Congress to endorse his complaint.
“Meron na. In fact, I was able to confirm it. Pero ayoko muna ilabas yung mga pangalan,” the former congressman said.
(Yes, there is. In fact, I was able to confirm it. But I don’t want to reveal names yet.)
“I’m confident that these people are also like-minded. Gusto rin nilang masuri ‘tong mind-boggling na pag-aari (They also want to investigate the mind-boggling wealth). Can you imagine, six years probably in public office someone can accumulate billions of pesos na ill-gotten. Talagang tinatago,” he added.
Lawyer Oliver Lozano, a Marcos loyalist, filed a separate impeachment complaint against Bautista on Saturday “for alleged culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust while serving in his previous post as head of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) and as current Comelec chief.” CBB