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Kampi exec offered me P2M to back impeach case - solon


(Update 3, 8:15 p.m.) Anakpawis Rep. Crispin Beltran on Tuesday tagged Francis Ver, deputy secretary general of the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) - the political party of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo - as the "male ally of Malacañang" who offered him a P2-million bribe to support a weak impeachment complaint against the chief executive. "As you know, it is impossible for me to accept Mr Ver's bribe. He did not even possess nor present a copy of the impeachment complaint," Beltran said in Filipino in a privilege speech before the House of Representatives. Ver, however denied Beltran's allegation. In an interview with GMANews.TV on Tuesday, Ver confirmed that he approached Beltran last Friday but denied that he offered the lawmaker P2 million. "I had no intention to bribe anybody. I was just there to monitor the political situation. Mahal na mahal ko 'yang si Ka Bel. Siya ang balwarte ng oposisyon. I just asked him, Sir, meron daw nag-eendorso, alam n'yo ba 'yon?," he said. In the same speech, Beltran surmised that Malacañang had a hand in Ver's activities at the House of Representatives and the impeachment complaint against Mrs Arroyo. "What does Mr Francis Ver have to do with this impeachment complaint and why did he offer P2 million to me and other representatives in the minority? If Mr Ver is still active in Kampi, the political party of the President of the Philippines, then clearly Malacañang and the administration have something to do with the impeachment complaint of Attorney Pulido." The Anakpawis lawmaker was referring to the impeachment complaint lodged by lawyer Roberto Rafael "Roel" Pulido toward the close of office hours on Friday, October 5. Minority congressmen raised fears that Pulido's three-page complaint was weak and that its possible junking would save Mrs Arroyo from impeachment for another year. "With the statements and revelations regarding the events surrounding the anomalous ZTE-NBN deal and with the involvement of First Gentleman Mike Arroyo as well as the many anomalous cases involving the President, I believe that Malacañang will do everything to save the political leadership of the Arroyo administration," Beltran said. Hours after Beltran's privilege speech, the Kampi leadership announced that Ver has been sacked as the party's deputy secretary general. Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno, concurrent presidential political adviser and Kampi chair, said that, "I think you can now refer to him as ex-deputy secretary general of Kampi because certainly this is something that Kampi does not countenance." Sorsogon Rep. Jose Solis, a Kampi member, denied that the party itself was behind the alleged bribery attempt or Pulido's impeachment complaint. Raising the stakes In his privilege speech, Beltran said Ver first approached him at the south gallery before plenary budget deliberations were suspended for lunch last Friday. Ver then allegedly offered P1 million in exchange for Beltran's signature. "At first I thought that Mr Ver was not serious, so I simply told him that I am busy and couldn't entertain him because among the agenda in the plenary is the deliberation of the budget of the Department of Agrarian Reform," Beltran said. He added that, "However, a few hours later, maybe around 2 o'clock in the afternoon, he (Ver) approached me again in the session hall near the South Lounge and offered me P2 Million – an amount which is twice as much as his first offer. That was the time when I deemed he is indeed resolute in seeking my support." A statement released by Beltran's office on Tuesday before noon said the Anakpawis lawmaker raised suspicions that he became a target of the bribe try because of the "exorbitant hospital bill" incurred during his 16 months of detention at the Philippine Heart Center in Quezon City. "In any case, they were severely mistaken in their attempts to bribe me. I would be the last person to accept a bribe, especially one that is aimed to push a bogus impeachment complaint against a bogus and illegitimate presidency," he said. JDV challenge He chided Malacañang for resorting to "very, very sloppy" tactics just to gain support for what he described as a "fake" impeachment complaint by Pulido. "It's clear to everyone that there is a massive rift between Malacañang and House Speaker Jose de Venecia, and De Venecia is under extreme pressure to show leadership in the House despite this rift. His loyalties must now be to exposing the truth – even if it means severing alliances with Malacañang," he said. For his part, Pulido said Monday the charges against Mrs Arroyo were of "probative value" because the testimonies made by resigned elections chair Benjamin Abalos and former socioeconomic planning secretary Romulo Neri were "admissions against [their] interest." "The pieces of evidence I used in the complaint were of merit because they came from two people who were ready to protect President Arroyo," he said in Filipino. Pulido alleged in his complaint that Mrs Arroyo betrayed the public trust after she allegedly played a role in the $329.48-million national broadband network project with China's Zhong Xing Telecommunications Equipment (ZTE) Corp. - GMANews.TV
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