No gov’t expense for administration bets – Drilon

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino did not spend public funds for the campaign of the senatorial candidates of the administration coalition, Sen. Franklin Drilon said yesterday.

Drilon, Team PNoy campaign manager, was reacting to the call of poll watchdog Kontra Daya for the President to declare his election-related expenses.

Kontra Daya convenor Renato Reyes said the President should not be exempted from the requirement of the Commission on Elections for candidates to file their Statements of Contribution and Expenditures. He said contributors and media entities were also asked to declare campaign financers.

Drilon said the expenses incurred for the President’s security detail and transportation among others in the course of the campaign were because of his official governance functions and not to campaign for the candidates of the administration coalition.

He also clarified that the President’s schedules were planned several weeks in advance and “we set the sorties and asked for PNoy’s presence in accordance with his official schedule.”

“For example, when PNoy was scheduled to inspect the new airport for Cagayan de Oro in Languindingan, we took the opportunity to ask him to attend the Team PNoy rally in CDO (Cagayan de Oro). We had a rally in Samar when PNoy was there to inaugurate the newly built port facilities. In Cebu, the President was the guest in the inauguration of Megaworld’s project,” he said.

Drilon had repeatedly stated that most of the campaign sorties of Team PNoy “piggybacked” on the governance schedule of the President.