Miriam: Arroyo’s NY dinner ‘outlandish, excessive’

MANILA, Philippines – Even an administration ally branded as “outlandish" and “excessive" the reported $20,000 dinner President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and her entourage had at an upscale restaurant in New York last week. “(It’s) outlandish that people from a developing country should rack up a bill for P1 million. It is too excessive for the circumstances of the country," said Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago in an interview on dzBB radio Sunday. Santiago, chair of the Senate’s foreign relations committee, was included in the Philippine delegation to the United States for Mrs. Arroyo’s meeting with President Barack Obama in Washington last July 30. The senator said that when they were in New York, she did not attend the dinner at the Le Cirque, which was listed among the US’ top 40 restaurants. On August 7, US tabloid New York Post reported that Mrs. Arroyo was seen at Le Cirque “the other night with a large entourage enjoying the good life…(President Arroyo) ordered several bottles of very expensive wine, pushing the dinner tab up to $20,000," or roughly P960,000. Malacañang admitted that the dinner indeed took place, but clarified that Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, nephew of former first lady Imelda Marcos, footed the bill. [See: Arroyo dined lavishly in US before attending Cory’s wake] ’Ill-conceived’ But Santiago said that the choice to have the dinner at Le Cirque was “ill-conceived," given the global economic crisis and the Philippines’ status as a developing country. “Nagulat ako... dahil sa napakamahal na restaurant. Mahal na nga ang lahat sa New York, dun pa sa isa sa pinakamahal. Di dapat yun ang piniling lugar, kundi mas mura-mura naman," Santiago said. (I was surprised that the dinner was held there. Everything is expensive in New York, but they had the dinner at one of the most expensive restaurants. They should have chosen a cheaper place instead.) The senator recounted that while the delegation was having the dinner at the plush restaurant, she had hers at a Vietnamese restaurant. “Ten dollars ($10) lang, may kanin na, may ulam ka pa (For only $10, you can already get a meal with rice and viand)," she said. Santiago added that part of the $20,000 bill “is really the prestige and for the privilege of seeing and being seen. Ayaw ko ng ganoon. I feel very uncomfortable, di ako mahilig magmake-up, mag-jewelry pa ako (I don’t like that. I feel very uncomfortable wearing make-up and jewelry) ." She also said in jest that she did not want to attend the dinner because it would end past her bedtime. “Masungit na ako pag sa oras na ganiyan eh (I’ll get cranky by that time)," Santiago said. Not a single centavo Earlier in the day, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde insisted that "not a single centavo of taxpayers’ money was used to pay for the dinner" and that he does not know how much the dinner cost because it was Romualdez who payed for it. He also denied that the presidential delegation had a lavish menu, saying they had “set" meals that included soup, salad, main course and dessert. Remonde said he himself had a fish course, and a Diet Coke. The press secretary likewise called the New York Post article as "black propaganda" against Mrs. Arroyo. “Again, part of ongoing black propaganda yan para magalit ang tao kay pangulo (Again, that is part of black propaganda so people will get mad at Mrs. Arroyo)," Remonde told dzBB in a separate interview. Still, Remonde said that Malacañang would not take any action against New York Post for what he said was its "grossly exaggerated article. [See: Palace won’t lodge complaint vs NY tabloid over $20K dinner]- GMANews.TV