Mike: I didn’t take bribe

First Gentleman Jose Miguel "Mike" Arroyo returned from the United States before dawn yesterday to face accusations that he received a P50-million bribe from the Philippine Communications Clearinghouse Inc. (PCCI).

"My conscience is clear. I did not receive any money. I have nothing to hide," the First Gentleman said, reading a prepared statement in Filipino upon his arrival at 3:05 a.m. on a Philippine Airlines flight from San Francisco, California.

Arroyo, 55, welcomed the ongoing preliminary inquiry of the Ombudsman on accusations that he received the P50 million in exchange for working for the withdrawal of a presidential veto of the franchises awarded to PCCI and APC Wireless Interface Network (WIN).

"I am now ready to give my affidavits and whatever other requirements. I will help the Ombudsman and whatever committees in order for my countrymen to know the whole truth," Arroyo said.

He said he himself suggested to the Pre-sident that the bribery scandal be referred to the Ombudsman although he was not a government official.

"I will submit myself to (the Ombudsman’s) jurisdiction. It’s faster and better this way because it is a criminal proceeding so that we can immediately know whether or not I really have any involvement," he said.

The First Gentleman also denied forging a secret deal with his accuser, former pre-sidential correspondence secretary Veronica Rodrigo, while he was in the US.

Arroyo said the accusations against him, which flew thick while he was out of the country, were all politically motivated. He, however, refused to elaborate.

"Perhaps these issues were all mudslinging and pure politics. I really don’t know why because all I do is charity work only," he said.

Arroyo also denied that he endorsed the appointment of friends to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and the Light Rail Transit Administration (LRTA).

President Arroyo and two of their children, Mikey and Luli, welcomed back the First Gentleman at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) after undergoing medical treatment in the US.

Arroyo said he underwent minor surgery on his right leg and the recurrence of his backache problems.

"My right leg was getting numb. I have this pinched nerve which caused the numbing and I was taken to an operating room and injected with cortisone. I can walk now but it was really painful before," he explained.

He also said his slipped disc problem, caused by a helicopter accident in Benguet in 1998, recurred after he carried heavy loads during a recent anti-dengue drive.

He said he needs to return to the US in three months to undergo surgery if his back condition does not improve.

Arroyo said he also had bronchitis and a case of sleep apnea, or temporary cessation of breathing during sleep for normal or abnormal reasons.

Meanwhile, Presidential Spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao disclosed yesterday Arroyo will soon designate an official spokesman to facilitate the release of public statements.

Tiglao explained he needs to have his own spokesman because he is technically not a government official who can make use of the government’s press relations facilities.

Allow Senate probe of scandal, Estrada urges

Meanwhile, jailed former President Joseph Estrada said in a statement it would be better for Malacañang to allow the Senate to conduct its own investigation on the bribery scandal.

Estrada said in the statement that "a parallel inquiry of the Senate is necessary in order for the truth to come out."

He told reporters after his pre-trial hearing at the Sandiganbayan yesterday that he immediately called for a Senate inquiry when his wife, now Sen. Luisa Ejercito, and son former San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada were dragged into a controversy involving PCSO funds and projects.

An investigation by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, then under Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. eventually cleared mother and son.

But Pimentel himself said the Senate would have to shelve a probe by the Senate Blue Ribbon after Rodrigo denied first-hand knowledge that Arroyo indeed received the P50-million bribe.

Tiglao, for his part, said Malacañang has no business telling the Senate what to do but reiterated the President’s appeal to the opposition to let the Ombudsman handle the investigation of the bribery

"We cannot tell the Senate what to do. It’s their (senators’) sole prerogative to pursue any investigation which they think is necessary," Tiglao said.

"Let’s stop attempts at political grandstanding and for the Congress to start working on the legislative agenda," he said.

It’s just an appeal," Tiglao stressed. "The Senate is an independent body. It has its own decisions. An appeal is an appeal, it’s just a request - not to stop it but to cease from making this a political circus."