The camp of Janet Lim-Napoles, the businesswoman at the focus of the P10-billion pork barrel scam, dared the government to freeze the accounts of lawmakers and non-government organizations (NGOs) implicated in the suspected misuse of pork barrel funds.
The so called hand in the scam Napoles has prompted the Anti-Money Laundering Council and the Office of the Solicitor General to ask for the freezing of her assets; a request the Court of Appeals granted.
Lorna Kapunan, Napoles’ lawyer dared to freeze all accounts and assets of all those mentioned in the report: lawmakers, NGOs and government officials.”
Kapunan was actually referring to the Commission on Audit (COA) report, according to COA director Maria Grace Pulido-Tan, from 2007 to 2009, masses of dubious NGOs, including 10 purportedly associated to Napoles, received millions in pork barrel funds from lawmakers.
Kapunan noted that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), which is investigating the pork barrel scam, was the only venue where her client can reject the accusations against her.
In addition, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said the freeze order covered some 400 financial accounts of Napoles, her family and NGOs.
On one hand, the NBI has so far requested the supposed whistleblowers in the scam, Benhur Luy and Merlina Suñas, both claiming to be former employees of Napoles, to get their testimonies.
Napoles and her brother Reynald Lim are presently the subject of manhunt operations by the NBI and the police in association with a serious illegal detention case involving Luy.
