■ BAUTISTA FILES THEFT, GRAVE COERCION CASES AGAINST ESTRANGED WIFE, SAYS HIS SALN IS ACCURATE
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Andres Bautista filed four criminal complaints yesterday against his wife Patricia Paz, who has accused him of amassing around P1 billion that he left out of a required annual declaration of wealth. Bautista, however, said he had correctly declared his assets and earnings in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN). “There are monies in the name of my parents, siblings. All properties belonging to me are in my SALN,” he said. In an interview over ANC yesterday, Bautista also said that a copy of a draft impeachment complaint against him had been sent to his sister last June, three months before his wife made public her accusations against him. The National Bureau of Investigation is investigating the allegations against the Comelec chief.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Juan Andres Bautista has filed several charges against his estranged wife in retaliation for the latter’s accusation that he has unexplained wealth amounting to close to P1 billion.
The poll body chief said charges were filed against Patricia Bautista before the Taguig City Prosecutor’s Office.
“We have filed cases for grave coercion, qualified theft, robbery, among others,” said Bautista in an interview over ANC.
He did not give details of the charges when he was interviewed at the kick-off activity in connection with the start of the printing of official ballots at the National Printing Office (NPO) on Wednesday.
But he raised four fingers when asked on the number of cases that he filed.
Earlier, Bautista said his wife had forcibly opened his cabinet and took documents, cash, automated teller machine ( ATM) cards, gift certificates, passbooks, financial reports, and an iPad.
Bautista admitted that the ex- change of accusations between him and his wife in public is not good for their children.
Bautista said he would like to protect their children from being dragged into the mess.
“Yun ngang aking isang anak, hindi na pumapasok dahil dito (One of my kids no longer attends classes because of this). Is the universe taking care of them right now? It’s not fair to them. That’s the problem,” Bautista said in the television interview.
He also reiterated that all his assets and earnings were correctly declared in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Networth (SALN) and that he has no undeclared wealth.
“I did not lie in my SALN. There are monies in the name of my parents, siblings. All properties belonging to me are in my SALN,” he said.
Earlier, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II tasked the National Bureau of Investigation to coordinate with the Anti-Money Laundering Council in conducting an investigation into Bautista’s alleged wealth.