Enrile dares Villar to dispute bribe try

January 27, 2010

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile yesterday virtually challenged Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. to dispute his claims of a bribe try on him which the head of the Senate made on record.

“I welcome any interpellation on that,” Enrile said, referrring to the attempt by Villar to strike a deal with him during a luncheon meeting sometime in August last year in exchange for a favorable resolution on the C-5 road extension project controversy where he is alleged to have anomalously funded.

“I had a companion when this lunch took place. Villar came alone. He had no companion. I was expecting that he would be accompanied by somebody. But evidently, he did not bring anybody simply because he was going to talk the way he talked,” Enrile said.

“We have no reason to fabricate these things and I think the gentleman knows where the truth lies,” he added.

Villar, on the other hand, insisted that no such bribe attempt or even offer of help to the veteran lawmaker took place in that meeting, but he also refuses to bring this up in the Senate, preferring to deny this bribe charge and other charges leveled against him through the media, along with his Nacionalista Party spokesmen making the rounds of media and denying the bribe offer made to Enrile.

He admitted through interviews that he was “hurt” by Enrile’s latest allegations against him, appealing to his colleagues to refrain from resorting to what he called below the belt accusations.

“The accusation made by Enrile hurts, but even if I have hurt feelings toward him, that’s still okay, but not that way. That is not right. There have been so many charges leveled against me even in the report which is full of lies. I borrowed money. I offered a bribe. Everything is a personal attack,” he said.

Villar stressed that his critics in the Senate appear to be running out of issues against him that they are now getting into taking it on a a personal level.

He maintained that there is no reason for him to seek out Enrile, much more ask for a favorable decision because he’s not guilty of the charges.

“At the right time, I will answer these charges, but I will not involve myself in such antics,” Villar said.

Instead, he set his NP attack dogs against Enrile, with NP senatorial candidate Adel Tamano yesterday saying that the bribery charges hurled by Enrile against Villar “defies human experience,” adding it is unusual for a high public official to report an alleged crime months after it took place.

“Enrile’s accusations are highly improbable and uncommon if based on human experience. He should ask himself: Is it normal behavior for a person to report a crime four months after it allegedly occurred?” said Tamano.

“If he wanted to be at least credible in his claims, Enrile should have reported it right away. But since it was told belatedly, Enrile’s statements now belong to the realm of the incredible.”

He said Enrile’s “ill-motivated smear campaign” against Villar has turned from bad to worse and from the ridiculous to the outrageous.

“At first, he said it was his duty to bring out the committee report on the C-5 Road Extension Project as the principal sponsor to allay fears of being politically motivated. And all of a sudden, Senator Enrile had a change of heart. The C-5 issue in the Senate is turning from bad to worse, and Senator Enrile’s handling of the issue is turning from ridiculous to outrageous,” Tamano said.

“With this new accusation, we no longer doubt that the whole exercise is political in nature,” he added.

Enrile said he did not bring up the alleged bribery attempt during hearings on the road project because he didn’t want to destroy Villar’s case.

Meanwhile, the continuation of plenary debates on the committee of the whole report No. 780 was shelved, at least for yesterday’s plenary proceedings to pave for the approval of pending bills.

Congress has three remaining session days left before they go into another recess.

The panel report carries the recommendation on Villar to be censured by the Senate and for him to refund to the government the over P6 billion cost of the C-5 road project.

Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said they in the majority bloc, called for a “ceasefire” on the deliberations of the C-5 report so as not to derail the passage of pending bills.

Tension flared up within the halls of the Senate when the matter was brought on the floor, with political allies and foes of Villar lashing against each other, others, even resorting to name calling.

“As of now, it’s ceasefire time for all of us because of the many pending bills that are a priority,” he said.

Based on the explanation given by Zubiri, the move to suspend the debates was also aimed at averting a possible stalemate in voting for the adoption of the report, especially in the matter requiring 12 or 16 votes will be an issue.

Sources from the Villar camp said Enrile’s ranks do not appear solid in voting for the report as there are those who seem to be apprehensive in coming out in the open as to their “actual” stand on the case against Villar.

“That’s why they want to push for votation,” Zubiri said, referring to the minority bloc, moving to put the report to a vote.

“For me, let’s do it for next week whatever the outcome of the voting. Of course, if one in the group moves to adjourn then there’s nothing we can do. I just wish to ask the minority if we can do this on Monday. We will go on with the voting.”

Zubiri said this has the blessings of Enrile, the Senate chief who is said is concerned over the issue of another round of floor debates which is turning out to be a circus-like, as described by observers and reported in the media.

“It’s no ploy to delay. There’s no ploy to delay, believe me. If there’s anything I want to do, it is to finish it already. We’re just out to dispose of our job, our duties,” he said.

“There are many of us who want to work. We don’t want trouble. Let’s reserve next week for the boxing match. The final boxing match,” he said.

Sources said the ranks of the majority bloc are polarized insofar as “voting” on the panel report is concerned, as there are those who are said to be having some apprehensions in exposing themselves to be sympathetic to Villar.

A possible stalemate is seen when voting procedure comes, sources said.

Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. suspects the move as a possible delaying tactic by the majority bloc, considering that they are not likely be able to carry even at least the number of a “simple majority” or 12 votes for the adoption of the report, with the absence of Sen. Panfilo Lacson.

Pimentel said they could only be “buying time” in the hope of gathering enough support.

“We are ready for interpellation, we are ready for debate, we are ready for the vote since yesterday. They (majority) were rushing this. Why don’t they want to tackle it today? They have the control of the agenda,” Sen. Joker Arroyo, a member of the minority bloc, said.

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