MORENO: WE SHOULD HAVE RULES ON EXCESS CAMPAIGN FUNDS
Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso on Friday called for additional guidelines on what electoral candidates were supposed to do with unused campaign donations as he fielded persistent questions about the over P50 million in excess contributions that he admitted keeping from his losing senatorial run in 2016.
At the presidential forum organized by the KBP, the Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer was asked if he “did the right thing” in keeping the extra cash.
“That’s a good point. In the future, we should lay out rules that can guide all our candidates. At the time, what I was thinking of was to perform my duty as a citizen and pay my taxes,” he said.
What was important, according to the 47-year-old presidential aspirant, “is that a candidate is honest whether anyone is looking or not,” Domagoso said in reply to a comment about the propriety of keeping campaign contributions as income.
P50-M surplus funds
He surmised that his admission of keeping the money, first made during a GMA7 television interview last month, was likely unheard of among the candidates, which he said could be why it was courting controversy.
“It might be unique in your view because no candidate probably has publicly talked about having excess funds and paying taxes. For me, I only did what was expected of an obedient citizen, according to the law,” Domagoso said in Filipino.
“In fact, I asked the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) what should I do. They said, ‘pay tax.’ I paid tax,” he said.
Domagoso received P171 million in campaign contributions in his failed candidacy for a Senate seat, based on his statement of election contributions and expenditures. He declared P120.19 million in campaign expenses, leaving a surplus of more than P50 million.
On Wednesday, he was asked in a dzBB radio interview what he did with the money.
“Naitabi naman natin nang maayos. Masinop naman ako sa pera, awa ng Diyos (We kept it properly. I am responsible with money, with God’s mercy),” he said.
Domagoso also denied buying a mansion with the money. “Mansion? Naku, wala (Oh no, there’s no such thing),” he said.