‘No candidate declared receiving campaign funds from Napoles’

MANILA, Philippines - None of the candidates in the past three elections have declared receiving any campaign contribution from alleged pork barrel fund scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said yesterday.

Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said the poll body reviewed the Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCEs) filed by national candidates, including political parties, in the 2007, 2010 and 2013 elections and none of them listed Napoles as contributor.

 â€œI am sure we did not see her among those who gave contributions to candidates... At the start of this issue (pork barrel scam), we had the SOCEs reviewed and we did not see her,” he added.

But earlier, Brillantes said the Comelec found one losing congressional candidate in Pasig City who received P30,000 in contribution from a “Mr. and Mrs. Napoles.”

The defeated party-list group Ang Samahan ng mga Mangangalakal Para sa Ikakaunlad ng Lokal na Ekonomiya Inc. (A-SMILE), on the other hand, received P200,000 in contribution from pork barrel scam whistle-blower Benhur Luy.

Brillantes said the Comelec would go over the SOCEs again to be sure.