Andanar: No apology for media bribery claims

MANILA, Philippines - Blaming his lack of fluency in Filipino, Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar has refused to bow to pressure from the Senate media for an apology, as he argued that he never accused any particular journalist of receiving $1,000 in pay-off for coverage on Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV.

“Let me tell you about this. I’m a Bisaya. I grew up in Cagayan de Oro…I also grew up in Surigao and my Tagalog may not be as perfect as your Tagalog. So let’s put it at that,” he told one reporter in yesterday’s briefing at Malacañang.

The Senate media has demanded a public apology from Andanar for “spreading fake news, truly unbecoming of someone who, just a few months ago, came from the media industry.”

Andanar maintained that he did not refer to members of the Senate media about reports he received from sources that money was distributed to reporters who covered Trillanes’ press conference last Monday.

“There are always two sides of a coin. You can take it that way or you can also take the story that I was giving,” he said.

The secretary added that there are attempts by critics of President Duterte to remove him from office and a concerted effort to create a massive protest on Feb. 25, the 31st anniversary of the EDSA People Power revolution.

Under fire for what the Senate media described as “unsubstantiated” and “irresponsible” statements, Andanar said he holds the reporters covering the Senate in “high esteem.”

“It was not intended to say that the reporters at the Senate are corrupt. They are not corrupt. I personally knew them. I hold them in high esteem and the fact that I said, in the same interview with Pinky Webb, that there is nothing in the intelligence report that says they received the money proves that the reporters of the Senate are good reporters and they stuck to their journalistic integrity,” Andanar pointed out.

Citing sources from “higher places,” he maintained he has validated his information that money is changing hands in an effort to convince people to withdraw their support for Duterte in the run-up to the People Power commemoration.