London – President Arroyo has not acceded to any request by accompanying congressmen for lunch or dinner during her four-day official working visit here, according to the ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau.
Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez said the President is heeding the clamor for tight public spending especially during foreign trips.
Suarez caught the public eye when he admitted last August that he also sponsored an almost P700,000 dinner for the President’s delegation in Washington.
This was after media reports on the alleged P1-million dinner hosted by Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez at Le Cirque restaurant in New York that drew widespread criticism.
Apart from Suarez and Romualdez, four other legislators are part of the President’s entourage in the United Kingdom.
According to Suarez, all six congressmen decided to spend their own money in the UK because they want to improve the image of Mrs. Arroyo.
The Philippine delegation will next visit Saudi Arabia from Monday to Wednesday.