Palace distances self from Binay son suspension

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang on Wednesday distanced itself from the Ombudsman's suspension order on Makati Mayor Erwin "Junjun" Binay over corruption allegations.

In a text message to Palace reporters, Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said the suspension order on Binay was from an impartial government office.

"It is the decision of the Ombudsman, an independent body, and part of their normative procedure," Lacierda said.

Earlier, the Ombudsman said Binay and several other Makati officials have been suspended for six months pending investigation of the allegedly overpriced P2.2-billion Makati City Hall II parking building.

A special panel of investigators formed by the ombudsman on Friday filed a complaint for graft, malversation and violation of the procurement law against the younger Binay, his father Vice President Jejomar Binay and 22 others.

They are facing administrative charges for grave misconduct, serious dishonesty and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.

The Binays allegedly earned kickbacks from the carpark project, which supposedly underwent irregular bidding.

The controversy led to a Senate investigation which uncovered other allegedly irregular projects in Makati and the rest of the purportedly ill-gotten wealth of the Binays, including a sprawling agricultural estate in Batangas province.

The elder Binay had said that the decision of Ombudsman to proceed with the preliminary probe on the Makati carpark building may be used as a cover-up for the Mamasapano incident.

"That is true. They continued with the Senate hearings, now it’s the ombudsman," Binay said last week.

READ: New charges part of cover-up for Mamasapano incident – Binay