Escaler: If MJ will let me, I’ll talk about $2-M

Put it in black and white.

If Manila Rep. Mark Jimenez gives businessman Ernest Escaler his "express written permission to disclose the particulars" of Jimenez’s $2- million transaction that was supposedly paid as a bribe to Justice Secretary Hernando Perez, Escaler said he will "be pleased to do so."

"I am a businessman and, among other things, I am a professional investment and private banker. I cannot reveal the details of any account which may have been opened through my services," Escaler told The STAR.

"I do, however, categorically deny that any of my bank accounts was opened or utilized for Secretary Hernando Perez," Escaler said.

He also laughed off Jimenez’s claims that he frequently traveled to Hong Kong with Perez.

"With regards to the $2-million account, when Congressman Mark Jimenez gives me his express written permission to disclose the particulars of this transaction, I will be pleased to do so," Escaler said.

He also explained that one cannot easily open an account in Hong Kong in another person’s name. Escaler added that a beneficial owner could not be equated with the account owner or holder. Banking laws in Hong Kong require the account holder to be the sole beneficial owner of the account, Escaler said.

He admitted that he knew Jimenez, though they are not close friends. Escaler told The STAR that "it was Mark Jimenez who asked me to help him turn state witness against Erap" in February of 2001.

Escaler said he met with Jimenez at the Westin Philippine Plaza hotel and arranged a meeting between Perez and Jimenez.

He refused to comment when asked by ABS-CBN if the $2 million in question was money he changed for a foreign exchange transaction on Jimenez’s behalf.

According to a statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ), Escaler’s statement "has virtually cleared Perez from Jimenez’s charges."

The 53-year-old bachelor generally keeps a low profile despite his jet-set lifestyle.

While his business interests are varied and numerous, Escaler has been involved in the arts, previously serving as chairman of the Ballet Philippines Foundation. He is currently chairman of the Asian Cultural Council-Philippines, for which benefit he recently hosted a gala dinner at the Cultural Center of the Philippines for David Rockefeller Jr. and the trustees of the Asian Cultural Council of New York, including designer Josie Cruz-Natori, Ralph Samuelson and Sir Kenneth Fung.

Aside from guest of honor President Arroyo, in attendance were Perez, US Ambassador and Mrs. Francis Ricciardone, Speaker and Mrs. Jose de Venecia, Sen. Francis Pangilinan, Bukidnon Rep. Miguel Zubiri and the country’s top business and industry leaders and social figures.

He is also involved in the entertainment field, bankrolling the new version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Flower Drum Song, starring Tony Award-winner Lea Salonga at the Mark Taper Forum in downtown Los Angeles last year. The musical is currently playing on Broadway in New York.

He also arranged for the participation of several Filipino actors, led by award-winning Cesar Montano, in the film The Great Raid at Cabanatuan, produced by Miramax Films and currently being shot in Australia. The movie stars Hollywood actors Benjamin Bratt and Joseph Fiennes.

He started the Spirit of ’67 band composed of his high school classmates at the Ateneo, but now only occasionally jams with the group.

Escaper founded the Asian Basketball Academy in Tagaytay which brings in coaches and players from the National Basketball Association (NBA) to train local coaches, players and referees.

He managed the Ateneo varsity basketball team that won its first back-to-back championships in the UAAP in 1987 and 1988.

During the administration of former President Fidel Ramos, Escaler joined then First Lady Amelita Ramos in forming the Tagaytay City Advisory Council. He and Mrs. Ramos were neighbors in Tagaytay City.

Escaler is a scion of the wealthy De Leon-Escaler clan of Pampanga and is the son of Don Ernesto Escaler, founder of the Phinma Group and Bacnotan Consolidated Industries Inc.

The Escaler family owns vast tracts of property in Pampanga and ran the Pampanga Sugar Development Co. (Pasudeco).