Villar takes Senate floor, says C5 issue all about politics

(Updated 11:10 p.m.) For the first time since the Senate report on the C5 controversy came out, Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. took the Senate floor Tuesday to defend himself from accusations that his corporations benefited from the road extension project. He, however, did not entertain questions from senators and quickly left the session hall after his privilege speech. "I can explain my wealth. I am the principal shareholder in a public company that I founded. In business circles, I have been known as the brown taipan. Hindi ko kailangan ang 200 million pesos na sinasabi nilang nakimkim ko sa proyekto ng (I do not need the P200 million I allegedly earned from the) C5 extension," Villar said. Two weeks ago, the Senate committee on the whole came out with its report after a two-year investigation of the C5 controversy and asked C5 Villar, among others, to return the P6.22 billion his corporations allegedly obtained from the road project. In his speech Tuesday, Villar, the standard bearer of the Nacionalista Party in the May elections, compared his accusers to "talangka" (crab) who are trying to pull him down. "My conscience is clear. I have been maligned and condemned by some of my colleagues by presenting statements without proof," he said.
"I have never stolen money from the public coffers and I have no intention of stealing," he added, in reaction to speculations on how he would recoup his massive spending for advertisements for his presidential bid in the May elections. He also said he was neither a "coward" nor a "liar." "I stand before the Senate in defense of my name, my honor, my dignity against my accusers in the so called C-5 controversy. To set the record straight and to prove to the senator, who called me coward, na hindi ako duwag [that I am not a coward]. Wala pong duwag na taga-Tondo [No one from Tondo is a coward]!" he said. In defending his participation on the C5 road project, he said only those with vision and capability can be part of such an undertaking. "The C5 project – a project that shows the country is moving forward. While many of us who want to get elected promise progress for our country, C5 is that promise realized. It is there for everyone to benefit from and take advantage of," he said. He said the committee report censuring him was presented to deceive the people. "The report was most unfair to me. The report does not reflect truth. Walang itong katotohanan, wala akong kasalanan, walang anomalya sa C5 project, hindi ako nakinabang dito. Sa mata ng Diyos ay masasabi ko yan," Villar said. Senate report The Senate committee report said there is substantial evidence that Villar is a major stockholder of Adelfa Properties Inc, which owns Golden Haven Memorial Park and Azalea Real Estate Corporation (now Britanny Corporation), and was the proponent of Las Piñas-Parañaque Link Road project and the C-5 road extension project implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). It said the road projects were made to pass through the properties of the corporations of Villar following a curved, instead of a straight, alignment. It also said that the alignment of the C-5 road extension segment of the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway Project had to be changed just to accommodate the alignments of the Las Piñas-Parañaque and C-5 extension projects. Villar's corporations allegedly received road right-of-way compensation and still have unpaid claims. It said the properties of Villar that were acquired were given zonal valuation for different areas, thus increasing the compensation due them. It also said that Villar failed to avoid a conflict-of-interest situation by not divesting himself of his shareholdings or interest in the mentioned corporations. It added that Villar used his power to satisfy the interest of his corporations. No corruption In his defense, Villar denied the accusation of corruption and blamed his political rivals for the allegations. "Where is corruption? Hindi na-release ang pera. Yan ay nasa imahinasyon lamang ng ilang senador," he said. "For the record, the C5 project is not just my personal project. This is a project of the government implemented through the DPWH," Villar said. "I did not influence the DPWH to have the C5 pass through any of my properties. The project was not rerouted as it followed the original route or alignment preferred by the DPWH," he added. He said he did not answer the Senate report immediately because he did not think he would get a fair hearing in the Senate. "Ang aking pag-tahimik ay hindi pagiging duwag. Ito ay di pagkilala sa korteng ito," he said. "Lutong makaw ito mula simula hanggang katapusan," Villar said. "Mahirap gisingin ang nagtutulog-tulugan pero mas mahirap gisingin ang kalaban sa pulitika dahil kahit anong paliwanag ay hindi nakikinig." Villar’s immediate departure from the session hall, meanwhile, did not please Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile. "It's quite unfortunate that he refuses to practice the tradition that we practice in this Senate to questions from colleagues who may wish to clarify certain things out of statements made before the Senate," Enrile said. However, Enrile was glad that Villar came to explain his side on the issue. - with a report from Sophia Dedace/KBK/YA, GMANews.TV