Kapunan to Bautista: Flight consistent with guilt

Andres Bautista (left) and Lorna Kapunan. INQUIRER FILES

“If you’re really claiming innocence, flight is not consistent with innocence. It is guilt that is consistent with flight.”

That was the message of lawyer Lorna Kapunan to former Commission on Elections (Comelec) chief Andres “Andy” Bautista, as their camp welcomed the arrest order against him for snubbing a Senate probe on Monday.

“Tama yung sinabi ni Senator (Francis) Chiz (Escudero) na chairman ng committee, ang tatapang nila pag wala namang investigation. Ngayon naman may investigation eh ang daming excuse,” Kapunan told reporters.

Kapunan is the legal counsel of Bautista’s wife, Patricia, who has accused him of amassing nearly P1-billion in unexplained wealth and of owning more than 30 bank accounts with the Luzon Development Bank’s (LDB) amounting to P329 million.

In a letter, Bautista claimed he had not received any invitation to appear before the Senate committee on banks, financial institutions and currencies’ inquiry.

He said he had been out of the country since November 21 last year to “explore professional opportunities” and “seek assistance for certain medical challenge” he was facing.

But the committee, during Monday’s hearing, cited the former poll chief in contempt and ordered his arrest upon his return to the country.

READ: Ex-Comelec chair Bautista ordered arrested over Senate snub

“Ang kawawa rito tayong lahat kasi how will we know the truth?” Kapunan said.

“Just because may pera sya at kaya nyang mag-abroad, just because may pera sya pwede syang pabalik-balik. Tanungin natin saan sya nagkapera? The inference here is: so that people would not think of him unkindly, come out and face the committee,” she added. /cbb