Condo winner Rep. Abigail Binay: It’s a gift from God

Makati Representative Mar-Len Abigail Binay-Campos facebook photo

MANILA, Philippines – For the daughter of the country’s vice president, there is nothing wrong if she decides to accept the Christmas raffle gift from Rockwell Power Plant Mall, which happens to be in Makati, a known Binay stronghold.

Makati Representative Mar-Len Abigail Binay-Campos even said the unit was a gift from God after a stressful year at the House of Representatives.

“Sa laki ng paghihirap namin ng Kongreso last year, siguro sabi ng Diyos, sige, this year, bibigyan ka namin ng pampagana,” Binay told reporters on Monday.

(Maybe after a stressful year in Congress, perhaps God decided to give me a little pick-me-up to keep on working this year.)

The studio unit she won is worth P5 million from “The Grove,” a residential property line of Rockwell Land Corporation in Pasig City, Binay said.

The Makati lawmaker added that she only won the unit by chance, and that there is no issue on delicadeza if she decides to keep it.

“Ano’ng problema sa pagtanggap ng condo? Hindi naman ako nandaya (What’s wrong if I accept the condo? I didn’t cheat). It was by pure chance,” she said.

She also said her winning has nothing to do with her status as vice president Jejomar Binay’s daughter and a congresswoman.

“It is by sheer luck that I won the raffle. It wasn’t based on my financial status or my stature,” Binay said.

She added, too, that she did not have the raffle rigged. “I was joking that if I had rigged the raffle, I would have preferred an Innova,” Binay said in Filipino.

This was not the first time she won a prize in a raffle before, Binay said. She had also won a Hong Kong trip, a flatscreen television, and a painting.

Netizens reacted against Binay when she won the raffle, pointing out that she is already well-off.

In the summary list of representatives’ statements of assets and liabilities net worth, Rep. Binay has a net worth of P41.2 million in 2012.

Meanwhile, Laguna Rep. Joaquin Chipeco, chairman of the House ethics and privileges committee, said their rules do not prohibit lawmakers from accepting raffled gifts.

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