Aquino mum on DAP list

President Benigno S. Aquino III answers questions during the Coffee with Media held at the Maritem Hotel. The President arrived here on Friday (September 19) for the last leg of his four-nation tour of Europe to meet top Geman officials and business executives. (Photo by Robert Vinas / Malacanang Photo Bureau)

MANILA –President Aquino refused to comment on the allegations that most of his closest allies in the administration are the ones who benefited most of the Disbursement Acceleration Program.

“I don’t have the list,” Aquino said, referring to the list of lawmakers who allegedly received huge funds from the nullified DAP.

Aquino said he was not the one responsible for giving out the funds to the lawmakers.

“They are the ones in charge,” he told journalists at the Omni Berkshire Hotel in New York.

Aquino was referring to Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Budget Secretary Florencio Abad as the ones who may have knowledge about the fund allotment.

A tally presented by Rep. Tobias Tiangco, secretary-general of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance, which he based on the two-inch-thick DAP report given to him by Abad became controversial after revealing that most of the lawmakers who got large amounts of money are among Aquino’s closest friends.

Based on the tally, Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, who served as manager of the House panel that prosecuted then chief justice Renato Corona in the latter’s Senate impeachment trial, received the biggest allocation of P408 million.

Meanwhile, Belmonte reacted on the list through a text message saying that he was not sure about the list’s accuracy.

“Not aware of it or how accurate it is. But of course, as Speaker, I sometimes share (my allocations) with colleagues,” he said.

He also disagreed with some details on the list saying that his district was only allocated P201 million for 2011-2012.

“All were coursed through the city government of Mandaluyong as implementing agency,” he said.

He also said that of the funds allocated to him, a total of P180 million in excess funds were returned to the Bureau of Treasury adding that he had “the receipt to prove it.”