No censure vs DOJ chief's vote-buying bid

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez has insisted that he "did the right thing," and President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and her deputies have decided to look the other way. They would not punish him for offering P10,000 to village chiefs in Iloilo who can deliver a 12-0 vote for the administration's senatorial candidates under Team Unity. Chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Apostol on Thursday also tried to downplay the issue, saying it was only the media that had raised a howl about Gonzalez's offer. "Nakakakuha sila issue kay Raul pero tama ginagawa ni Raul. Tumutulong din sa TU yan (The opposition may have scored on an issue against Raul but Raul did the right thing because he was helping the administration slate)," Apostol said in an interview on dzXL radio. Apostol said the the Palace has yet to receive any formal complaints against Gonzalez for his offer. Until then, he said there is no reason to punish Gonzalez. When asked if the Palace plans to at least gag Gonzalez, Apostol said, "wala, wala, wala niyan (no, no, there's nothing of the sort)." Gonzalez received flak for offering P10,000 to each village chief in Iloilo province who can deliver a sweep for Team Unity. He claimed this was not electioneering because he is not a candidate, and that the money would come from his own pocket. Apostol, on the other hand, said Malacañang sees no reason to punish Gonzalez or even render a legal opinion on the issue because there is no formal request or complaint. "Talagang wala naman complaint, walang request sa issue tungkol diyan, kaya walang action na gagawin ang Palasyo. Maghihintay ng request, petition o complaint, e wala e. Walang gagawin ang palasyo (There's no complaint, no request for any legal opinion so we won't act. We've been waiting for a request or a complaint, but none has come our way so far. So the Palace is not going to do anything about it)," he said. Besides, Apostol said the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is already investigating the case. He said the Palace will leave it to the Comelec to handle something "within its territory." On the other hand, he said the issue against Gonzalez appeared to be more of a media creation. "May media people nagsalita nang ganoon pero walang nagko-complaint kaya walang gagawin ang palasyo riyan (Some media outfits have reported it but beyond that there is no formal complaint so the palace will not act on it)," he said. "You never render a legal opinion on matters where there is no request for rendition of legal opinion. You don't render an opinion on a news item. You read, you prepare for it but when there is no complaint, there is no sense of rendering an opinion," he added. He also took a dig at the political opposition for making a big issue of it. "Ang katotohanan ang opposition wala nang issues, maski ano pinapatulan kaya tama na yan (The opposition has run out of issues so it will ride on anything. That's enough)," he said. - GMANews.TV