Drilon hits back on accuser, calls him ‘dud’

Senate President Franklin Drilon (Photo courtesy of Drilon’s Facebook account)

MANILA – Senate President Franklin Drilon on Wednesday called his accuser a failure for coming out with another document to substantiate former Iloilo provincial administrator Manuel Mejorada’s claim that the Iloilo Convention Center (ICC) is overpriced.

”He’s a dud,” Drilon told the media, referring to Mejorada who submitted to the Senate blue ribbon committee documents, including Deed of Donation which, he claimed, will prove that the ICC project was overpriced.

Mejorada, who admitted in the previous Senate inquiry that he only relied on the online Wikipedia, said he succeeded in getting the Deed of Donation where the Department of Tourism (DoT) and lot’s donor agreed to construct the ICC for only Php 200 million.

Drilon laughed off the claim of Mejorada, saying the Php 200 million was the cost of the phase 2 of the ICC project being constructed inside the Megaworld complex in Iloilo City.

”Again, he’s a dud, because the Php200 million is the contribution of Tieza (Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority) in the building,” Drilon said.

”In fact, the Php200 million has not been used. That is for the second phase, for the finishing. The first phase, the first phase is about to be finished,” he said.

Drilon said in previous Senate investigation the total cost of the phase one of the ICC project was Php500 which was sourced from his Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) and General Appropriations Act.

The Senate leader said the claim of Mejorada that the cost of the project was only Php200 million “is based on a misunderstanding.”