Escudero responds to Comelec show cause order, maintains campaign donation from contractor was legal
Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero, on Tuesday, Oct. 14, has submitted his response to the Commission on Election's show cause order asking him to clarify the circumstances surrounding the P30 million campaign donation he received from a contractor prior to the 2022 national elections.
Comelec served Escudero the show cause order on Oct. 4, giving him the choice of appearing in front of the commission himself or having his lawyer submit his affidavit on his behalf.
Prior to serving Escudero's show cause order, Comelec had issued another to Lawrence Lubiano, who made the campaign donation to Escudero. Lubiano is the president of Centerways Construction and Development, Inc., which is among the top 15 contractors that cornered 20% of flood control projects.
The issued orders are part of Comelec's investigation into whether Lubiano's millions in donation to Escudero violated Section 95 of the Omnibus Election Code, which forbids contributions from persons who hold contracts or sub-contracts with the government.
Comelec is determining whether the contractor donated the funds as a private citizen or if he used corporate money, said Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia on Oct. 4.
Escudero submitted his response through his lawyer, Atty. Ramon Esguerra.
“His lawyer filed this morning. He brought an affidavit,” Garcia told reporters on Tuesday.
“Therefore, para sa amin, kompleto na yung lahat ng ingredient para po magkaroon ng disposition yung opisina nila,” he added
In a post on his Facebook page, Escudero confirmed his position on the matter through a statement by his legal counsel.
"We filed our submission early to respect the Comelec process. Our position is clear: the donation was legal, fully declared, and follows long-standing practice. The law is on our side, and we are confident the Comelec will find no fault," the senator wrote.
On Monday, Garcia told reporters, that Escudero believes Lubiano's donations were from the contractor's private funds.
“Kung ano sinasabi niya publicly din. Na talagang ito ay tinanggap niya sa paniniwala na personal capacity at private funds bilang kaibigan niya si Lubiano. Sa amin, titimbangin natin yan. Aalamin kung sapat bang depensa o violation ng batas,” he said.
During a House hearing, Lubiano claimed that his donation came from his own pocket and not from his company. However, Garcia previously pointed out that it doesn't matter where the funds came from since the Omnibus Election Code prohibits people with government contracts from making donations.
