Villar denies ‘modus operandi’ allegation by Jamby

Senator Manuel Villar Jr. on Wednesday denied allegations that he and his wife, Las Piñas Representative Cynthia Villar, reaped windfalls by buying lands at low price and mortgaging it to their own bank. "Palpak na naman ang akusasyon, puro mali (The accusations were wrong)," Villar said on the latest allegations by Senator Ma. Ana Consuelo "Jamby" Madrigal. Madrigal bared the alleged irregularity during the hearing of the Senate committee of the whole on the ethics complaint she filed against Villar. Villar said the accusation was no longer connected with the C5 extension project, the subject of Madrigal's complaint, as it deals with the alleged transaction of Capitol Bank. "Sa akin lang ay hanggang kailan ba ito? Ngayon, one year na, wala pang napapatunayan. Nanganganak e, naghahanap ng iba’t ibang issue. Iba naman ito, bangko naman," Villar said. (When will these accusations end? One year had passed and they have yet to prove anything. They’re just digging for more issues, and this time it’s about bank transactions.) He said the hearing was being used to advance the political ambition of some of the presidential aspirants – an obvious potshot at Madrigal who had earlier announced her intention to run for president in next year’s elections. "Ako naman I never doubted na ito ang puno’t dulo nito (I never doubted that all this was about politics)," he said. Villar has not attended a single hearing on the issue. Capitol Bank Villar's counsel, lawyer Nalen Galang, said all the transactions of Capitol Bank were legal and had complied with all banking requirements. "Otherwise the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas would not have allowed the granting of the P3.5 billion emergency fund for the bank," she said. She added that Capitol Bank had already settled the said amount with the BSP and that it has no outstanding balance. The bank had also paid all its depositors. "The Capitol Bank transactions with BSP are legal, above board and in full compliance with all applicable banking laws. Capitol Bank has no outstanding obligation with the BSP and all depositors got their money," Galang said. The lawyer said on the Factor property, the title presented by Madrigal was already canceled and the BSP is now the registered owner of the lot. "The proceeds received from the government were remitted to BSP," she said. On the Maria Rodriguez property, the lawyer said there was full disclosure to the BSP that the property will be affected by the C5 Road and the BSP consented and received the proceeds. She said the Illuminada Rodriguez property has nothing to do with BSP. No jurisdiction The lawyer also said the Villars no longer have shares on the Optimum Development bank. She also said that since the transactions happened even before Villar became a senator, the "acts are beyond the jurisdiction of the Senate." Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile agreed to this. "That borrowing of the money at that time will not be taken as part of the ethical misconduct because he was not yet a part of the Senate," Enrile said in an interview with reporters. The Senate will resume its hearing Thursday morning next week, which will be followed with an ocular inspection in the afternoon. Enrile said they would be inviting officials from the BSP, Department of Public Works and Highways, Land Registration Authority and Register of Deeds to clarify the points Madrigal raised. - GMANews.TV