• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
In the absence of evidence, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has cleared Sen. Chiz Escudero for receiving a P30-million campaign donation from construction magnate Lawrence Lubiano, ruling that it did not violate election laws, as it was a “personal” donation.
In a resolution released on November 26, the Comelec Political Finance and Affairs Department (PFAD) said that contractor Lubiano’s campaign donation did not violate a provision of the Omnibus Election Code (OEC).
The Comelec department also recommended terminating the investigation into Escudero and Lubiano.
In a statement, Escudero said the Comelec decision “affirms what we have always believed and practiced—that transparency, honesty, and adherence to the rules matter, and that the truth prevails when the process is fair.”
Since we first ran for public office in 1998, we have worked to consistently comply with our election laws because this is the foundation of public trust, the senator said.
The Comelec’s ruling strengthens my faith in our institutions and reinforces my commitment to continue serving with integrity and accountability, Escudero added.
Section 95(c) of the Omnibus Election Code bars “natural and juridical persons who hold contracts or sub-contracts to supply the government” from contributing to “partisan political activity,” whether “directly or indirectly.”
“No evidence gathered so far that would establish that he acted merely as an instrumentality or alter ego of the corporation to perpetrate fraud or commit any act prohibited under Sec. 95 (c) of OEC,” the resolution stated.*
