Sen. Paolo “Bam” Aquino IV yesterday pressed Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre to make a public apology over his pronouncements linking members of the opposition to the ongoing armed conflict in Marawi City.
Aquino said he is baffled over Aguirre’s delay, saying there’s no reason to wait until Monday to correct his mistakes.
“The Justice Secretary should simply apologize and take responsibility for his reckless accusations,” Aquino said in a statement.
Aquino said the clarification that the Department of Justice chief issued is merely stating the obvious.
Aguirre had received flak for alleging that Aquino and Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV met several fellow lawmakers and prominent families in Marawi City on May 2, three weeks before the firefight in the city erupted.
Both rejected the accusation and countered they attended regular session at the Senate. Aquino said he was also the commencement speaker of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.
Aguirre later on backtracked his statements after several other personalities backed the two senators’ statements but did not issue a formal public apology, saying he was just misquoted. (Hannah L. Torregoza)