MANILA - Climate change should not be used as a political sound bite, Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) spokesperson Rex Gatchalian said, following Sen. Jamby Madrigal’s tirades against NPC vice presidential candidate Sen. Loren Legarda.

“I wish that she does not use valid issues such as climate change for a political sound bite. That is insensitive,” Gatchalian told Abs-cbnnews.com/Newsbreak in a phone interview. 

Abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak had initially sought an interview with Legarda about the criticism of Sen. Jamby Madrigal that "she loves climate change" because "she will always change to the climate that is favorable to her." (Read: Jamby on Loren: she changes like the climate ). Instead, she referred us to the NPC spokesman.

Gatchalian said real problems such as climate change should not be muddled with politics, especially in the face of recent disasters brought upon by tropical storms Ondoy and Peping. The typhoons killed hundreds and displaced thousands of families.

Madrigal’s denigration of Legarda, who has bannered climate change as her main advocacy, stemmed from the fact that the latter signed Senate resolution no. 1472, which cleared Nacionalista Party (NP) standard-bearer Sen. Manuel ‘Manny’ Villar of an ethics rap pending before the Senate committee of the whole.

Madrigal was irked that Legarda switched sides after a year as she, along with senators Panfilo Lacson and Manuel ‘Mar’ Roxas, originally pushed for the ethics probe against Villar.

The NP presidential contender is in hot water for allegedly ordering the "double insertion" of P200 million in the 2008 national budget for the realignment of the C-5 road extension project.

The realignment has allegedly made it possible for the Sucat-Parañaque link road to traverse the properties sold by Villar’s real estate companies Adelfa Properties Inc. and Golden Haven Memorial Park, consequently raising the value.

Political climate change

Madrigal filed an ethics complaint against Villar, which was investigated by the committee of the whole. Before the committee came up with its report however, Legarda, along with 11 other senators who included Villar himself, signed the contentious resolution which was filed Monday, a day after Legarda made final her decision to team-up with Villar for the 2010 elections.    

“So mahal mo ba sarili mo o mahal mo ba ang taong bayan? Siya ang chairman ng oversight committee ng climate change. I know now why she loves climate change. She will always change to the climate that is favorable to her,” Madrigal said in an exclusive interview with ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau.

Gatchalian defended the decision of the NPC vice-presidential contender to sign Resolution No. 1472. He stressed that Legarda’s actions fall under her mandate as a member of the Senate.

Legarda pushed for the probe last year because “she wanted the truth to get out,” Gatchalian said.
 
When the evidences presented in the investigation failed to prove that Villar engaged in disorderly behavior, Legarda supported the moves of her fellow senators to call for the dismissal of the charges.

Loren: 'Twas a democratic process

The resolution sought the junking of the raps based on the following grounds:

• Atty. Yolanda Doblon, head of the Legislative Budget Research and Monitoring Office, testified that there was no "double insertion," only "regular amendments"; 

• an officer of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said that the zonal valuation of questioned lots were not overpriced Department of Public Works and Highways regional director Edilberto Tayao said that there may be confusion between two separate projects – the C-5 road project and the road project of the Toll Regulatory Board.

 
In a statement, Legarda reiterated that she sought for Villar’s investigation "because this is a democratic process."

“Ito ang tangi at pinakamahusay na paraan para malaman kung totoo ang alegasyon o hindi,” she said.

When the probe failed to nail Villar on the charges due to lack of evidence, she said that the only reasonable action to pursue is to have the complaint dismissed.

“Hindi po ako puwedeng sumama sa mob rule na gusto ng iba na kapag pinagbintangan ng isang kapanalig, ang isang tao ay sentensyado na habambuhay. Proseso at  pruweba, iyan po ang isinasaad ng batas,” she added.