Opposing lawyers in Napoles case now share stage

They may have been on opposite sides at  the height of the P10-billion pork barrel scam more than two years ago but lawyers Levito Baligod and Lorna Kapunan share the same stage in support of similar causes such as fighting corruption.

Baligod and Kapunan were two of the seven senatorial candidates endorsed by the Sanlakas party-list in a ceremony yesterday afternoon at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani in Quezon City.

The five others were Young Officers Union founder Dado Valeroso, former Akbayan Rep. Walden Bello, Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares, Federation of Free Workers’ Allan Montaño and migrant workers advocate Susan Ople.

Sanlakas and its allied organizations selected the senatorial candidates from different political parties to run under a seven-point “pro-people platform,” which seeks “meaningful and genuine change” for the country.

The seven-point platform includes: Providing regular employment; improving social services, such as education, housing and transportation; ensuring government support to farmers; having pro-people budgeting and taxation; ensuring climate justice; eradicating corruption; and protecting the country’s sovereignty against foreign and corporate powers.

In 2013, Baligod served as legal counsel of principal whistle-blower Benhur Luy in the illegal detention and plunder cases filed against alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles, who was represented by Kapunan.

But Kapunan dropped Napoles as her client in October 2013, citing disagreements with her and the meddling of the other lawyers hired by Napoles as consultants.

 ‘We’re professionals’

Napoles, who is currently detained at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City, is accused of engineering the P10-billion scam which funneled government funds to lawmakers’ pockets.

Asked about his dynamics with Kapunan now that they will be working for the same advocacy, Baligod only shrugged, “We’re both professionals.”

“We can rise above pettiness,” Baligod told the Inquirer.

Sanlakas president Manjette Lopez said Kapunan was included in their list because of her background in the group Kilusang Makabansang Ekonomiya, which “advocates for economic nationalism and champions the fight against poverty and corruption in all branches of government.”

Should he be successful in his Senate bid, Baligod said he would push for “program-based spending” and work on enriching Filipino patriotism and spirituality through the school curriculum to help improve one’s character and eradicate corruption.

Lopez said that with the set of senatorial candidates they were endorsing, they hoped to finally put an end to “personality-based patronage politics.”

“We must teach the electorate—especially the toiling and impoverished majority, who are most susceptible to vote buying—to scratch superficial motherhood statements and electoral sound bites by pursuing exact and concrete reforms to address their plight,” Lopez said.

Sanlakas has also endorsed 37 local candidates, including Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman and former Palawan Mayor Edward Hagedorn. It also called for support for the party-list bid of Ating Guro and Ang Nars.