Pelaez says Defensor behind case vs Erap

Eight months after the incident, controversial businesswoman Blanquita Pelaez claimed Monday night Malacañang had a hand in her and her daughter's filing of charges against former President Joseph Estrada. GMA-7 television's Saksi reported that Pelaez claimed her daughter Joelle, a former beauty queen, filed the charges at the prodding of then presidential chief of staff Michael Defensor. Defensor is one of the 12 senatorial candidates of the administration's Team Unity. "Basta sinabi niya (Defensor) done deal and we were wondering what it means. Up to now panay nga ang tanong ko noong nalaglag, kako is this what you call a done deal (He just told us it was a done deal. Up to now we're still wondering, is this what you call a done deal)?" she said. Pelaez and her daughter arrived in the country July last year to file charges against Estrada, claiming the deposed president courted Joelle and gave her expensive gifts. Estrada denied the charges and filed libel suits against Blanquita and Joelle, who returned to the United States shortly after filing the charges. The elder Pelaez said Defensor met with them at least twice to convince Joelle to file a case against Estrada. She claimed Defensor even paid for Joelle's roundtrip ticket to the Philippines, and provided her with shopping money. "Airline ticket, mga ganyan, tapos mga hotel, everything. Of course nag-shopping naman siya (He paid for her airline ticket, hotel accommodations, everything. Of course Joelle went shopping) ... You mean to say you just used my daughter for something?" she said. In the same Saksi report, Defensor denied the charges, but admitted the Pelaezes "consulted" him on filing the case against Estrada. "Alam ko ang kaso na iyan dahil binanggit nila sa akin. Hindi ko ikinakaila, pero hindi ko sila itinulak o in-encourage para sa kaso na iyan (I know about the case because they mentioned it to me. I won't deny discussing it with them but I did not encourage them to file the charges)," he said. He also denied spending for Joelle's roundtrip ticket and hotel accommodations, and giving her shopping money. - GMANews.TV