MANILA, Philippines — Former Ilocos Sur governor Luis “Chavit” Singson described his arrest over a cyber libel case as a “badge of honor,” while denying that he was arrested at his residence and saying he voluntarily went to the police station to post bail.
In a statement obtained by The Manila Times on Friday, Singson said the case would not stop him from continuing his calls for an investigation into the alleged misuse of flood control funds.
“I wear this arrest as a badge of honor,” Singson said.
Singson said he respected the legal process but questioned the circumstances surrounding the case, including the circulation of his booking photograph.
“It is not true that I was arrested at my residence. What should have been a routine legal proceeding was an attempt to publicly humiliate me through the unauthorized circulation of my booking photograph,” he said.
He also questioned the designation of a judge from outside his home province and the speed at which the proceedings moved forward.
Singson said the filing of the cyber libel case came after he intensified his calls for a full investigation into the flood control controversy and sought answers on where funds intended to protect Filipino communities from flooding went.
“If asking where the people’s money went and who benefited from it is enough to earn a cyber libel case, then it only proves that these questions are hitting where they hurt most,” he said.
Singson questioned why those raising concerns over alleged corruption were being pursued while details of the controversy continued to emerge.
“Is it not noticeable that while the details of corruption are coming out, the ones speaking about it are the ones being silenced and being charged with cases?” he said.
He maintained that the issue was not the cyber libel case but determining where public funds went, who benefited, and who should be held accountable.
