Poe requests documents from Boston College to refute Tribune report

Senator Grace Poe has requested documents related to her student number from Boston College in a bid to quash the rumor surrounding her alleged acquisition of two social security numbers (SSN) in the United States.

Speaking to reporters in Cabadbaran, Agusan del Norte, on Monday, Poe shrugged off The Daily Tribune's claim that she illegally obtained a SSN from a dead person and used it under her full name, Grace Poe Llamanzares.

The newspaper has stood by its report despite Poe's camp's clarification that the second SSN-- 005-03-1988-- was her student number from her undergraduate days at Boston College.

Poe, a strong contender in the upcoming presidential race, earned her Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Political Science from the Massachusetts-based institution in 1991.

Poe said she is not afraid of the paper's claim because she knows the truth. "Ay, naku, aking student number ‘yan," she said in reference to her allegedly second SSN.

"Kaya nga ngayon ay kukunin na namin sa aking paaralan… Kung gusto nila ‘yon, kung gusto nilang manindigan doon, bahala sila basta alam ko ‘yung katotohanan. Hindi ako natatakot sa kanila. Patunayan nila na talagang sinabi ko ‘yan ang social security number ko," she said of The Tribune.

Poe's spokesperson, Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian, said they have yet to hear from Boston College regarding their request.

"We're still awaiting the response of the college. Rest assured, we will furnish you with a copy of the response when we secure it," he told GMA News Online in a text message.

Earlier in the day, The Tribune published another report claiming that Poe used her alleged second SSN to purchase a property in Virginia in 2006.

Poe, however, said she has no reason to acquire a second SSN since she and her husband always had the necessary legal papers while they were in the US.

“Sinabi rin nila na ginamit ko raw ko ‘yon para bumili ng isang property sa America. Bakit ko gagawin ‘yon? E ‘yung aking asawa at ako mayroon naman kaming official na numero,” she said.

The senator married Teodoro Misael "Neil" Llamanzares in 1991 and became a naturalized US citizen in 2001.

She gave up her American passport in 2010 prior to her appointment as chairperson of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB).

Poe denied having purchased a condominium unit in Virginia and said all documents related to her house in the US have been submitted to the Supreme Court as part of evidence to prove that she has been residing in the Philippines since April 2006.

She sold her US home at that time.

Contrary to the Tribune's report, Poe said their US home did not have nine rooms. She also said she and her husband worked hard to pay for their property purchase.

“Hindi naman sa nakaw kinuha ‘yon, pinagtrabahuhan naming mag-asawa,” she said.

Poe expressed dismay at the latest attacks aimed at her even as she remained confident that she will be able to handily dismiss the paper's latest allegation.

She, however, remained mum as to who might be behind the release of the reports.

“Siguro kayo na ang mag-research diyan, kasi kung ako pa ang magsasabi niya, sasabihin nila kasi mga katunggali ko ‘yan—ganoon,” Poe told reporters when asked about the matter.

“Pero nakakadismaya sapagkat ‘yung mga ibang tumatakbo nga o ‘yung isang [kandidato] matindi ang kasalanan sa bayan. Ito, nagsumikap, nagtrabaho nang marangal, gagawan pa nila ng istoryang ganyan. Wala naman akong dahilan para lokohin ang ating mga kababayan ukol diyan,” she added. —KBK, GMA News