Transcript of Ambush Interview with Senate President Franklin M. Drilon

Q: Do you have any concerns considering na ayon sa surveys nasa third ang pambato ng Liberal Party?

SPFMD: If you look at the data, it's a statistical tie for the second place, because of the plus and minus 2 percent margin of error: 21 for Roxas and Duterte, 25 for Binay and 26 for Poe. It's a good starting point. We still have two more months to go, but what is important is pagdating po ng kampanyahan sa local ay marami po sa amin sa kasamahan sa partido ay wala pong kalaban, at itong matibay na makinarya ng Partido Liberal ang siyang tutulong nang husto sa aming kandidato.

Kami ay naniniwala na itong makinaryang ito at ang pagpapaliwanag ng aming ginagawa na mainam na maipagpatuloy ang mga programa sa Tuwid na Daan, magwawagi po ang aming kandidatong si Mar Roxas pagdating ng halalan.

I am confident na kapag nag-umpisa na ang local campaign ay gagalaw ang aming local machinery.

Q: Yung appearance ni Pangulong Aquino sa TV ad with Mar and Leni, makakatulong po ba iyon?

SPFMD: Alam mo, si PNoy, at this stage of his presidency has the highest approval rating if you compare to the past presidencies. And therefore,we are confident that his endorsement will bring at least 10 percentage points to Secretary Mar, and therefore, it would be enough to overcome the other candidates.

Q: Are you looking forward to SC decision tomorrow?

SPFMD: Yes. Sana po matuloy na bukas dahilan sa delay na nangyayari ay lahat po ay alanganin. That is not fair to Senator Poe. That is not fair to our electorate. Sana po bukas magdesisyon na sila, dahilan sa palagay ko naman ay matagal na itong kasong ito. Napag-aralan ng lahat. At hindi naman siguro natin pwedeng sabihing pag-aaralan pa muli natin. I think the justices of the SC are duty-bound to decide this case as soon as possible, hopefully by tomorrow.

Q: Ano po ang scenario if hindi favorable kay Senator Poe yung decision, considering the ballots are already being printed?

SPFMD: I assume the Comelec is prepared for all contingencies, whatever the decision of the SC. I have no technical knowledge of the PCOS machine. I assume this is something that can be handled.

Q: Should the votes be counted or not?

SPFMD: I cannot answer that. I do not know the configuration of the PCOS machines.

Q: Yung magiging ruling ba ng SC ay final na o pwede pang mag-MR?

SPFMD: There is a motion for reconsideration provided under the rules. That remedy is available to whoever, whether the petitioners, Senator Poe, or the respondents, or the Comelec. The motion for reconsideration is a remedy available under the rules of court and that can be availed of by any party who will lose the case.

Q: Kapag nag-rule sila, di ba may existing temporary restraining order (TRO)?

SPFMD: Depende. If the SC says Senator Poe is qualified, then it becomes a permanent injunction. If the SC says, Senator Poe is not qualified, then they lift the temporary restraining order. That is why it's called TRO.

Q: On the anti-money laundering

SPFMD: The reality is, the President must exercise political will in order that both houses of Congress can get along and will have a common stand on this. Last time that the AMLA was amended, the version in the Senate included the casinos as a covered institution. Unfortunately, the House did not include it. Therefore, what happened was we were under pressure because of the deadline of the Financial Action Task Force, if we did not pass the bills, there would be a number of institutions who would not be covered including jewelry, land registration office, and a few others. In view of the differences in the versions and since we were under time pressure, we said alright, we concede with the House and therefore, the casinos were exempted.

But having said that, I will support an amendment to the AMLA which will include the casinos in its coverage. It was during my Senate Presidency that we first enacted the Anti-Money Laundering Act. Over the years, I have pushed for amendments that would provide more teeth to the Anti-Money Laundering Council. My track record would indicate that I have always been in favor of a stronger anti-money laundering regime.

Q: Will you take the initiative and file a bill on the amendments to the AMLA in the next Congress?

SPFMD: Yes I will file an amendment. If not, I will support any bill that will be of the same import.

Q: On Comelec's decision to activate the onscreen verification system of the vote counting machines instead of paper receipts

SPFMD: That is a good compromise between the right of the voter to know that in fact, the candidates he voted for are reflected, and the valid concern of the Comelec that a paper receipt can be an effective tool for vote buying. I think it's a good compromise and I fully support the Comelec in that regard.

Q: May balita na biglang tumaas ang registered voters sa ARMM.

SPFMD: If that is the case, I call on the Comelec to be more vigilant. It's about time that we put this to a rest.