Day 40: Corona, the Dramatic Diva

Just when I was saying that it is, what it is and that Corona should just stop insulting the people by continuing to play the victim (speaking in Tagalog, with his “kodigo”, and doing his best “kawawa” look), he ups his level and walks out, then claims that he was dizzy and hypoglycemic when his move was met with a senate lock down, and suddenly his people brings out a wheelchair, GMA style!

Walkouts and Wheelchairs

To sum up the defense strategy, it's to: Deny, deny, deny to death.  Threaten. Accuse. Promise to open Corona’s accounts. Promise that Corona will explain. Delay. Deny. Threaten the government. Keep mentioning Hacienda Luisita, over and over.  Accuse everyone else.  Delay to the point of making everyone doubt if Corona would ever truly testify. Then let Corona have a 3 hour opening statement. Let Corona dramatize his life (no maids, no aircon, family feud, mother has cancer, etc.) Cry. Declare that Corona will open his accounts. Let him sign the waiver (for dramatic effect) then make it conditional – he will only open it if the other congressmen also open theirs. Call this gesture something that’s for the country...  Then, well, disappear... If this fails (well, if there is an unexpected lock down), bring out the wheelchair, claim he has some illness. Let Corona come out in said wheelchair, let him close his eyes on camera like he's in pain. AND – EVADE CROSS EXAMINATION.

What’s next, St. Lukes? This is what everyone on social media said, as a half joke earlier tonight, you know, so he may follow his best bud GMA and they can be wheelchair buddies or hospital room buddies or neck brace buddies (should he choose to sport the same props). However, it’s apparently not St. Lukes, just to add a little surprise element to the drama, he went to Medical City instead. Deja vu, anyone?

The Truth?

But seriously, truth and transparency need not be so complicated and so lengthy. If they could say it straight up, wouldn’t they have done so by now?

All I’ve heard of so far are all accusations mixed with alleged plausible explanations on why his property and his bank accounts do not match his SALN – and hey regardless of how many accounts or properties he admitted to, they still don’t match his SALN and isn’t this the point?

What do we know so far? What message has been communicated? What are these “plausible explanations”?

Based on his opening statement, the bottom line is that ALL the discrepancies on his SALN are either:

1. Not his money as it came from: 

• Basa Guidote's (a company his wife stole from her family, which includes an aging nun that basically has nothing to gain from lying about him since she lives in a convent and probably really isn’t after the money
•  his mother's (who as he highlights has cancer btw)
•  his child's (who is so industrious that she has 2 jobs in the US)
•  His 40 year monthly savings (that he has been stashing away in USD because he believes this is a great investment strategy – Really? To just keep it liquid, kept in his bank accounts, when PHP has been gaining on the USD these past years and with the interest rates so low as well).

2. Due to mysterious defects of the properties – all bought on sale or some discounted arrangements because, apparently, he just loves to buy defective properties. 

3. Because he believes that if his money is in USD, he doesn’t need to put it in his SALN because it’s protected by the foreign currency secrecy law. (So, all embezzlers should probably convert their money to dollars and this will shield them from all kinds of prosecution – you know, because they are just following the interpretation of the law of the current chief justice. HMM?)  

I don’t know about you but all these don’t sound particularly uncomplicated, just seems like a zigzag roundabout way to explain his discrepant SALN.

Just because of his interpretation

So, he is technically appointed the Chief Justice because the judiciary (him included) voted to exempt his appointment from the ban.

The TRO to disallow opening his PS bank accounts, as decided by the judiciary (which he is the head of) was issued.

And, he doesn’t put his USD accounts into his SALN because based on his own interpretation of the law, he doesn’t have to?

Is it just me or isn’t all of these called - Conflict of Interest? 

But hey, we're all still suppose to think its valid, just because...?