Lacson dares Cayetano: Name people I threatened over Taguig projects

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Panfilo Lacson on Sunday challenged Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano to name those people he allegedly threatened in relation to reported anomalous infrastructure projects and illegal reclamation in Taguig City.

Lacson’s remarks were in response to Cayetano’s Facebook Live post where the latter had claimed receiving “feelers” that some parties were being pressured to admit there were irregularities in Taguig.

“Senator Cayetano should name the ‘individuals’ he alleged I threatened, so I can properly address this new issue point by point,” Lacson said in a statement.

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“Spinning tales betrays panic but like guilt, it will never go away,” he added.

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READ: Lino Cayetano may testify on Taguig ‘ghost projects’ – Lacson

In a livestream on Saturday, Cayetano claimed to have received “feelers” that some parties were being pressured by Lacson.

“Lately, a lot of people have been sending feelers, saying, ‘Senator, Kuya Alan, what should we do? We are being coerced because Senator Lacson has been insisting that something is wrong even though nothing has been found. Then we discovered that he, his staff, and some of their lawyer friends already have an affidavit and are trying to get others to sign it. There are also threats involved,’” Cayetano said but did not elaborate.

Cayetano also cited an incident involving six contractors whom Lacson supposedly threatened with plunder charges if they refused to sign a document.

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“Who wouldn’t be afraid of plunder? …But why would you sign? Because there’s intimidation, consequences. Not everyone has the same courage or stamina or patience or guts to stand up for what is right, especially against very, very high officials,” Cayetano added.

Lacson said he and his team have submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman at least 45 case studies backed by official d ocuments detailing “systemic anomalies” in flood control infrastructure projects in Taguig. These prompted a fact-finding investigation by the Ombudsman into the allegations. /das