Loi, Jinggoy: We did no wrong

On television, there was the Flying Nun. In real life, there's a "lying nun."

That's according to President Estrada, who lambasted Sr. Christine Tan yesterday for linking the First Family to an alleged fund mess at the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

First Lady Luisa "Loi" Ejercito and her son, San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada, told a Senate hearing yesterday that they did no wrong in disbursing the charity funds.

During the same hearing, former PCSO chairman Cecilia Muñoz-Palma deplored the nun for her "distorted" conclusions on the distribution of PCSO funds.

Tan, on the other hand, stood pat on her claim that there was an uneven distribution of cash for pro-poor projects.

She also denied having accused the First Family of any wrongdoing.

The nun stressed that her complaints focused on the manner she was relieved from the PCSO board and the misappropriation of funds.

"I never accused the President of any wrongdoing," she said.

Still, a furious Mr. Estrada said Tan was lying when she claimed that Mrs. Estrada and their son "misused" P416 million to finance their pet projects.

The President said his wife has been doing charity and civic works all over the country without any fanfare and, in return, she gets criticized by a nun.

"I didn't know that a nun could lie, too," he said in a radio interview.

He said Tan's claims were baseless since only P136 million of the P416 million have been released for pet projects.

Mr. Estrada then reiterated his call for the private accounting firm Sycip, Gorres & Velayo to audit PCSO records.

The President had asked his wife and son to appear at the Senate hearing to prove that they were not involved in any misdeeds.

Testifying before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee headed by Sen. Aquilino Pimentel, the First Lady said not a single centavo of the PCSO fund that she requested and received "has resulted in any personal gain for me and my family."

She stressed that the Office of the First Lady is committed to advance the social development and well-being of the poor.

"As such (the office) is designed to pursue the goals of the PCSO," she said.

She then enumerated the projects and corresponding fund allotments from the PCSO, including a P250-million program to buy 78 units of mobile clinics.

She also informed the committee that of the total P264 million approved by the PCSO for her projects, about P106 million have been released.

Mrs. Estrada stressed that all her projects were designed to help the poor.

"To date, the Serbisyong Panggamutan and Tubig Pangkalusugan have served some 180,543 patients in about 35 medical missions, 29 dental missions, four surgical missions and 33 relief operations carried out in various parts of the country," she said.

The First Lady said that even before her husband was elected President, she had already been conducting medical missions.

"As a physician, I have practiced my profession in accordance with the oath that I took upon entering the medical profession that I will help the sick and the underprivileged," she said.

For his part, the younger Estrada said the PCSO gave ambulances to towns that needed them most, as he denied that the distribution was meant to enhance political patronage.

The young Estrada, who is believed to be eyeing a Senate seat in the 2001 elections, told the committee that the bulk of the recipient municipalities belong to the lowest class and not vote-rich.

"It cannot be, likewise, said that the allocations of ambulances are based on affiliations with the ruling party," he added.

Estrada, president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP), cited official records which showed that 84 ambulances went to Lakas mayors, while only 69 went to LAMP, 27 to independents, seven to LP, two to the Nationalist People's Coalition, and one each for Kampi and Promdi.

He stressed that it was the LMP that identified the recipient municipalities based on specific criteria.

"The donation is only coursed through the LMP by virtue of its organizational nature and structure," he added.

Sen. Pimentel asked him if it is true that the ambulances from the PCSO bore his name instead of the PCSO.

Estrada replied that if this had been done, then it must have been at the initiative of the mayors and that he had nothing to do with it.

During the same hearing, Muñoz-Palma said Tan could have erred when she revealed that the PCSO approved a P60-million project and a reimbursement of P15 million to the President's social fund.

The former PCSO chairperson said the board did not approve such requests.

She also stressed that only 30 percent of PCSO funds are allocated to charity, which includes requests from local government units and endowment funds. --