Lacson: Group out to smear Reporma bets

FILE PHOTO: Presidential candidate Panfilo Lacson, incumbent senator and former national police chief. Photo from Lacson’s office

A political group is launching a massive black propaganda campaign against candidates of Partido Reporma after the group took offense at the party’s anticorruption tack, standard-bearer Sen. Panfilo Lacson said on Thursday.

In a press briefing, Lacson said he was tipped off by intelligence sources of a supposed “Oplan Wasak,” which was purportedly meant to wage black propaganda against him.

“We are still validating [the report], but we are not playing it down because it seems very detailed, and that some quarters are hurt by our ‘thief’ remarks. So someone is feeling the blows,” he said.

Lacson declined to name the group behind the supposed smear plot, but expressed surprise at the adverse reaction because he said that when he referred to “political thieves,” he was “speaking in general terms.”“Once we get our information validated and we have solid proof, we will confront it. There is no other way,” he said.

Not backing down

At various political rallies since the kickoff of their campaign in Imus last week, Lacson has been wooing votes by pledging an anticorruption campaign and cleansing of the bureaucracy, and constantly referring to a comparison between an ordinary thief and the political thief.

The ordinary thief, he said, chooses who to rob, and usually does it as a means of survival; a political thief, on the other hand, does not discriminate, and has insatiable greed, Lacson said.

The presidential candidate said that whenever he referred to “thieves,” he was not zeroing in on anyone.Lacson was quick to reassure his supporters that he will not back down on his anticorruption stance, even with the threat of damage that may be wrought by the supposed smear campaign.

“We will not stop as we are used to these kinds of battles. We will keep on telling our people in the face whenever we get the chance during dialogues,” he said.

Demoralize his team

According to Lacson, the smear campaign will aim to demoralize his team by downplaying their chances in the coming elections.

“I thought it wise to just nip the issue in the bud, because if it catches us off guard, it will already be difficult to defend against,” he said.

“I have yet to find out exactly, but some names have already emerged who are said to be bankrolling it, but I am not at liberty to mention,” he said.

Lacson cited recent media reports alluding to two presidential candidates who “abhor thieves” are supposedly mulling to withdraw from the race due to financial constraints.

“So I asked myself, ‘Could this be it?’ They could be referring to me and Senator [Manny] Pacquiao because we are the ones who are relentless in speaking out against corruption,” he said.

According to Lacson’s vice presidential candidate, Senate President Vicente Sotto III, the “obvious reason” for any black propaganda is usually to destroy the credibility of the target personality, in order to stop people from believing in what he or she is saying.

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