Noy, Frank deny PDAF deals with Janet
MANILA, Philippines - Alleged pork barrel scam operator Janet Lim-Napoles could be known to several lawmakers, but President Aquino said he could not recall any encounter with her when he was still a senator.
“I hope I am not turning senile but I don’t recall any incident,†Aquino told reporters yesterday after attending the 7th ASEAN Navy Chiefs’ Meeting in Makati City.
“I tried to research in my mind if I ever came across her or even heard of her name… Did I ever meet her? …I can’t even say I ever said hi to her,†he added.
He said Napoles did not even look familiar when she surrendered to him at Malacañang on the night of Aug. 28.
“I was trying to look at her and I don’t remember her…I am normally very good with faces…but I’m poor with names. She doesn’t look familiar whatsoever,†he said.
He said he even had some doubt if Napoles was indeed the person authorities are looking for when she was presented to him, as he noted some differences compared to her pictures in the newspapers.
Aquino said he could not have any dealings with Napoles because as an opposition senator, he no longer had his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).
“If her interest in a legislator was to find out how to access the PDAF, it’s useless to talk to me,†he said.
‘Guilty by association’
Senate President Franklin Drilon admitted that he knows Napoles but said he did not provide a single centavo of his PDAF to any of her non-government organizations (NGOs).
“There is a clear effort to implicate me as guilty by association with the pictures shown last night on TV,†Drilon said.
Photos of Drilon and his wife Mila with Napoles were shown on a television news program and found its way into social media. –With Marvin Sy, Jen Ponsaran
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