Senator Chiz Escudero’s legal counsel has filed an affidavit before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) explaining the P30-million donation made to his 2022 campaign by a contractor, according to commission chair George Garcia.
‘His lawyer filed this morning. He has an affidavit,’ Garcia said in an interview with reporters on Tuesday after a dialogue on the Supreme Court ruling on the first Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Parliamentary Elections.
‘Therefore, for us, all the ingredients are complete to have a disposition for their office,’ he added.
Garcia clarified that the decision on Escudero’s case was being handled by the office of the Political Finance and Affairs Department and not by the Commission en banc, emphasizing that he himself had inhibited himself from the case.
‘Because they (referring to the Political Finance and Affairs Department) are engaged in what is called data gathering, fact-finding, and therefore, it is up to them if they are charged,’ Garcia explained.
‘The contractor and former Senate President Chiz Escudero will not be charged. We are not interfering in that process,’ he noted.
‘We are not interfering in that process. In fact, your servant has inhibited himself there as the lawyer of former Senate President Chiz Escudero several times. So we will ignore whatever our office thinks is appropriate in this case. He has given a defense, and therefore, we will clash that with the provision of our law,’ he pointed out.
According to Garcia, the affidavit contains Escudero’s defense that he only accepted the donation from contractor Lawrence Lubiano, president of Centerways Construction and Development Inc., with the knowledge that it is a ‘private fund.’
‘That is what he is saying publicly in interviews that he really accepted it in his belief that it was a private fund and in a personal capacity as an acquaintance, a friend of Mr. Lubiano,’ the Comelec chair said.
‘And therefore, for us, we will weigh that. We will find out if that is a sufficient defense or a violation of our existing law in Section 95C of the Omnibus Election,’ he added.
In a statement sent to reporters on Tuesday, Escudero’s legal counsel Ramon Esguerra confirmed that he filed the affidavit ‘to respect the Comelec process.’
‘Our position is clear: The donation was legal, fully declared, and follows long-standing practice. The law is on our side, and we are confident the Comelec will find no fault,’ Esguerra said.
Comelec had earlier issued a show-cause order to Escudero, directing him to explain the P30-million campaign donation he received from Lubiano during the 2022 elections. /apl