Enrile denies betraying former aide Gigi Reyes

Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile on Monday denied betraying his former chief-of-staff Jessica “Gigi” Gonzales Reyes to clear himself in the plunder complaint filed against him for his alleged involvement in a P10-billion pork barrel scam.

 

“I am not up to betray any of my people. I have never been known for that,” Enrile told reporters.

Reyes resigned last January as Enrile’s chief-of-staff at the height of accusations that she had power over Senate matters and authority to sign on behalf of her boss.

 

Enrile declined to respond when asked if he indeed authorized Reyes to sign documents related to the release of his pork barrel funds to bogus non-government organizations (NGOs) linked to businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, who allegedly masterminded the scam.

 

“I will not discuss my case, if you don’t mind. I will face the music in the courtroom,” he replied.

 

Last week, plunder raps were filed against Enrile, as well as Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Bong Revilla Jr., for allegedly pocketing pork barrel funds from the scam supposedly engineered by Napoles.
 

Enrile, Estrada and Revilla earlier denied transacting with Napoles or her NGOs regarding their pork barrel funds.

 

Reyes: False accusations, betrayal  

 

In a statement posted on her Facebook page over the weekend, Reyes took offense to the statement supposedly made by Enrile’s spokesman, Enrique dela Cruz, that the lawmaker “did not give his blessings to any of the acts” she performed on his behalf.

“I never once thought that this day would come. I never stepped on anyone’s toes nor abused my position in all the years I served in the Senate. But I have earned the bitter ire and enmity of some people by and large because and in defense of Senator Juan Ponce Enrile,” Reyes said in her statement.

 

Enrile’s former chief-of-staff, who left the country last August 31 to “seek some peace and quiet,” also questioned Dela Cruz’s statement that the senator’s office is investigating her for “katiwalian.”

"I have lost contact with Senator Enrile and this very tragic development is beyond my comprehension," Reyes wrote. "The last time I spoke to the Senator from abroad, he maintained that he will stand by the authority he issued to me and that all that I did was faithful and pursuant to his instructions. He even told me to be strong; that we will fight together to prove the accusations against us are false and fabricated."

 

She added: “If indeed these statements are sanctioned by or coming from my former boss, then nothing can be worse than this kind of travesty and betrayal.”

 

GMA News Online contacted Dela Cruz to clarify if his earlier statements made last week in the media were sanctioned by Enrile, but the spokesman has yet to respond as of posting time.

 

Reyes, who was included in the plunder complaint in relation to the alleged pork barrel scam, also vowed to confront accusations against her.

"I have every intention to defend myself, my name and my honor and to acquit myself of all the baseless charges and blatant lies being spread about me and those contained in perjured affidavits of so-called whistle-blowers," she said. — RSJ, GMA News