JDV son says he's ‘Heart-struck’

“It was as if a thunderbolt hit me." This was how businessman and whistleblower Jose “Joey" de Venecia III described Thursday what he felt when he first saw television actress Heart Evangelista. The son and namesake of Pangasinan Rep. and former House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. admitted that his heart (no pun intended) skipped a beat when he saw the young star. "Siyempre kung makita mo si Heart, magaling at napaka-gandang artista, talagang titibok ang puso mo," De Venecia III said in an interview on dzBB radio on Thursday. (Of course, if you see someone like Heart who’s an excellent and beautiful actress, your heart will indeed skip a beat.) De Venecia III recounted that he and Heart first met about two or three weeks ago when the latter was taping at the Hacienda Leviste in Lipa, Batangas for her television show, “Ngayon at Kailanman." At the time, De Venecia III said he was making the rounds of schools in Batangas province. "Nu’ng nakita ko si Heart at ‘yung mga kasama sa cast…nagpalitrato rin ako at sinabi ko talagang big fan ako at minsan napapanood ko yung show niya," De Venecia said. (I saw her and other members of the cast. I had my picture taken with her and I told her I was a big fan and that I watch her show sometimes.) 2010 senatorial bid Asked whether he would seek the actress’ help should he seek a senatorial seat in the 2010 elections, the businessman said he has yet to consider the matter. Still, De Venecia III said he welcomes the idea. "Kung papalarin at papayag (si Heart), syempre po I welcome that (If fortunately, Heart agrees to help me, then I welcome that)," he said. De Venecia III made headlines in 2007 when he blew the whistle on the allegedly anomalous $329.48-million national broadband deal between the government and China’s Zhong Xing Telecommunications Equipment (ZTE) Corp., where among those implicated were First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo and former Commission on Elections chairman Benjamin Abalos Jr. De Venecia III is the owner of Amsterdam Holdings Inc., the information technology firm that lost the bidding for the broadband project. The contract eventually went to ZTE Corp., but President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo later aborted the deal. In August 2008, De Venecia III said he was eyeing public office but he was unsure whether to run as senator or congressman. In February 2009, De Venecia III bared that former President Joseph Estrada was wooing him to be part of the opposition’s senatorial ticket for the 2010 polls. - GMANews.TV