Comelec chief signs waiver to probe alleged offshore accounts

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairperson George Garcia said Saturday he signed a waiver to probe the offshore accounts allegedly linked to him.

“Lahat po ng pagtanggi ko ay under oath. Yung lahat po ng aking waiver ng account ng ito ay under oath, pinanumpaan ko po yun para pag nagkamali ako pwede akong makasuhan ng perjury (All my denials were made under oath. All my waivers regarding these accounts were made under oath; I swore so if they find out I’m lying, they can charge me with perjury),” Garcia said in an ambush interview.

“Ang atin lang pong request ay yung akusasyon ay under oath din para fair (So our only request is to make all their accusations under oath too to be fair),” he added.

The waivers pertain to offshore accounts presented by Sagip party-list Rep. Rodante Marcoleta on Thursday, 1 August, allegedly in Garcia’s name.

Marcoleta claimed that they tapped volunteers in New York to make bank transfers worth $100 to two offshore bank accounts allegedly owned by Garcia.

The lawmaker also claimed that receipts from Chase for Business indicated that the offshore bank accounts were under the name “George Erwin Mojica Garcia.”

Garcia immediately disowned the offshore accounts and reaffirmed his readiness to face Marcoleta’s accusations.

“Handa po akong humarap sa kahit anong pagdinig, sapagkat wala po ako ni isang foreign account, foreign property abroad (I am willing to face any hearing because I do not have any foreign accounts nor any property abroad),” he added.