Sunday, March 25, 2007

SINGSON'S NETWORTH INCREASES BY 2,600 PERCENT IN JUST SIX YEARS

25 March 2007Joyce Pangco Pañares
Lucena City -- Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis Singson has increased his total networth by more than 2,000 percent in
just a span of six years, but the local official who is now running as senator under the administration's
Team Unity denied his wealth came from the illegal numbers game jueteng.
In a copy of his 2006 Statement of Assets and Liabilities obtained by Standard Today, Singson declared
his total assets to be worth P49.59 million, which includes two houses in Vigan City, a house and lot in
Quezon City, and a commercial lot and building in Manila.
Singson, who has been a public servant for 28 years now, also has motor vehicles worth P4.5 million,
jewelries worth P1.2 million, and a cash on hand worth P5.37 million.
He also declared a total liability of P18.82 million, including loans from the Philippine National Bank as
well as other private payables.
This gives him a networth of P32.76 million, a 2,600 percent increase from his networth of only P1.2 million
contained in his 2000 SALN which he submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman.
"This should not be surprising because my family is really rich. It's not like I got rich overnight. We are
naturally rich," Singson said in an interview here in Lucena City.
But while Singson has brushed aside the significant hike in his assets, he did not deny that his main
source of income are his P28,000 monthly salary, a family-owned agricultural business in Vigan and an
LCS Mart in Manila which is being leased.
Singson said he is also stockholder in the Vigan Banco Rural Inc. and the Bantay Ice Plant and Cold Storage, two Ilocos Sur-based firms which he entered into in the early 1980s.
"Some would probably like to give this a negative spin and claim that I became wealthy through jueteng. But the truth is that I am a jueteng whistleblower, and whatever assets I have are hard-earned," he said.
"Most of the real estate properties that I own were acquired way, way back. Hindi naman ako mahirap, so wag naman sana ako insultuhin at kwestyunin pa kung saan nanggaling ang yaman ko dahil may pera naman ako (I am not poor, so I hope people won't insult me and question where my riches came from because I have money)," Singson said.
His networth last year, however, was the highest to be declared, with his 2000 SALN pegging his networth at only P1 million and a measly P512,488 in 1999 which was the same year that his former friend, Joseph Estrada, became president.
With his latest SALN, Singson is now the fifth richest candidate among the Team Unity senatorial bets, trailing behind re-electionist Ralph Recto, former senators Tessie Aquino-Oreta and Vicente Sotto III, and Surigao del Sur Rep. Prospero Pichay Jr.
Recto has a total asset of P237.11 million, which includes houses in Ayala, Alabang, in Batangas, and in Makati as well as investment shares worth P27 million and a variety of motor vehicles worth P6.5 million.
Following Recto in the money trail is the 62-year Oreta with P126.7 million including two Mercedez Benz (E240 and V230) and a Toyota Coaster, and a collection of jewelries worth P1.8 million.
Sotto, for his part, came in as the third wealthiest with P85 million followed by Pichay who is worth P41 million, which takes into account his jewelry stock that is higher than that of Oreta's at P2 million.
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