Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto on Monday afternoon urged the public to be “vigilant and discerning” following the statements of Cezarah “Sarah” and Pacifico “Curlee” Discaya at the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing earlier that day.
“Obviously, there are congressmen, DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) officials, and contractors who are guilty. But the spouses Discaya are clearly angling to become state witnesses,” Sotto posted on social media, claiming they are doing so to avoid imprisonment.
The mayor stated that he noticed the “many inconsistencies” in the Discaya couple’s statements, most notably in Curlee’s claim that they only earned 2 to 3 percent of the contract cost per project and were lucky if it reached 5 percent.
According to Sotto, this contradicted the Discaya couple’s statement in a previous interview where they revealed themselves to be billionaires with around “11 digits” of wealth or at least P10 billion.
“The President himself saw their ghost projects. Who would commit that big of a crime for only 2 to 3 percent profit?” Sotto said, advising the public not to fall for the Discayas’ “paawa (appeal for pity) effect.”
“The challenge is now how to sift through the half-truths and attempts to mislead us, not only of the spouses Discaya, but of everyone involved,” he added.
Pasig Lone District Rep. Roman Romulo, a political rival of the Discayas and an ally of Sotto, likewise issued a statement denying Curlee’s allegation linking him to anomalous bidding: “In this regard, it is quite clear that these accusations are nothing more than an attempt to divert attention, shift blame, and evade accountability for matters properly within their responsibility.”
