Lacson says he has forgiven Arroyo

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Panfilo Lacson has accepted former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s explanation that he was hunted and treated like a criminal during her administration because of information that turned out to be false.

Lacson, who is running for president under Partido Reporma, said he has forgiven the former leader a long time ago.

“Late is always better than never. To ex-PGMA’s credit, she has the decency and courage to admit that she publicly and unjustly accused me of various crimes based on false information. Whatever, I have already forgiven her a long time ago,” Lacson said on Twitter on Thursday, referring to a portion of Arroyo’s memoir “Deus Ex Machina” launched on Wednesday.

“For nine long years, under her regime, all that I had been hoping and praying for was to get back my dignity and honor,” he added.

Arroyo claimed she was fed false information by Antonio Luis Marquez aka Ador Mawanay, who linked Lacson in 2001 to various criminal activities. Mawanay eventually retracted his claims.