Benhur camp on Revilla's damage suit: Nanaginip sila

MANILA, Philippines - Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. has filed a damage suit before the Cavite Regional Trial Court against Benhur Luy and other whistle-blowers in the multi-billion peso pork barrel scam.

In an interview over radio dzMM, Levito Baligod, legal counsel of the whistle-blowers, said the damage suit asked the court to declare as null and void certain documents such as Luy's accounting records that had been submitted to authorities.

But Baligod said Revilla's lawsuit has no legal basis and that the senator cannot nullify the whistleblower's personal accounting records since he is not a party to the documents.

"Pwede mo lang ipa-annul ang isang dokumento kung isa ka sa nagprepare niyan at sasabihin mong mali yung pagka-prepare kagaya ng isang kontrata," the lawyer said.

He added that the documents were prepared in the course of Luy's employment.

"So sa tingin ko walang basehan 'yan," Baligod said.

The lawyer added that Revilla also wants the court to declare as null and void the supposed request letters submitted by his office to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) requesting for the release of his pork barrel funds.

Baligod said Revilla has claimed that his signatures were  forged.

But if Revilla's signatures were indeed forged, Baligod asks, why then did the DBM release the pork barrel funds of the beleaguered senator.

He said Luy is not the one at fault since he did not receive Revilla's letters.

"'Yung mga staff niya siguro ang nagdala sa DBM. Tinanggap ng DBM dahil galing namansa opisina ng isang senador at prinocess nila," Baligod said.

"So bakit sasabihin nila ngayon na dapat ma-annul 'yun dahil peke at bakit si Benhur at ang mga kasamahan niya ang may kasalanan? So mukhang nanaginip po yata sila," he added.

Baligod said Revilla also wants Luy and the whistle-blowers to return the funds received by the non-government organizations that were sourced from the pork barrel of the senator.

But he claimed that his clients had no authority to release Revilla's funds when they headed the dubious NGOs set up by Napoles.

"Nangyari lamang 'yan dahil may sabwatan sina Senator Revilla, si Gng. Napoles, at ang mga tiwaling opisyal ng ahensya ng gobyerno," Baligod said.

Baligod believes Revilla only wants to harass the whistle-blowers in filing a lawsuit against them.

"Ang ginagawa ni Senator Revilla ay maliwanag na panggigipit lamang," he said.

Baligod said in filing the case to declare certain documents as void, Revilla is somehow recognizing that such papers existed.

"Sa ngayon pa lamang ay inaamin niya na nag-eexist ang mga dokumento na 'yan," he said.

Revilla is facing a plunder case before the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with the pork barrel scam. About 30 people have been charged including Napoles and Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada.

Reacting to President Benigno Aquino III's televised speech on the pork barrel issue, Revilla reiterated that he did not misuse public funds.

"Hindi ako magnanakaw at wala akong ninakaw sa kaban ng bayan," Revilla said.

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