2010Election...Is your Presidentiable lying at you?   

To find out check their SALN, Statement Assets Liabilities and Net worth.

Despite common promises to uplift the poor from poverty, six presidential candidates possess personal wealth amounting to millions of pesos based on their statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN).

The SALNs of five of the six candidates were probed by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. “Rather than sliding to poverty because of fortunes they might have lost on elections, these candidates in fact managed to grow their wealth and net worth by small to phenomenal amounts over the years,” PCIJ said in a report on the declared personal wealth of the presidential candidates who are holding government positions.

The wealthiest

The presidential candidate with the biggest net worth is Nacionalista Party bet Senator Manny Villar, whose worth was pegged at P1.05 billion in 2008.

Villar, who entered government in 1992 as the Las Pinas representative, started with a declared net worth P75.4 million. At the start of his term as senator, his net worth grew to P481.5 million in 2002.

Of his P1.05 billion net worth in 2008, Villar declared a total of P19.5 million in real assets and P818.45 million in “other properties.” He declared no liabilities.

Villar's SALN was described as the “most stingiest” by the PCIJ, as the senator's SALN registered a “general entry” which did not specify companies and the corresponding value of stocks and income for each companies. Villar, who dubs himself as “tunay na mahirap (genuine poor)” in one of his political ads, is a real estate businessman and is the principal shareholder of BF Homes and Vista Land, among others.

"Failed mathematics"

Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro, Jr., the administration's standard bearer, reported the second biggest SALN among the presidential hopefuls, which was declared at P232.4 million in 2008. He started his political career as the representative of the first district of Tarlac in 1998; during that time, his net worth was at P80.17 million.

Since 1998, Teodoro has specified only three personal properties in his SALN—a residential lot in Makati, a condominium unit in Makati, and real estate “interest” in Sampaloc, Manila. In 2008, he declared a total asset of P205 million—P15 million more than the declared value of the Makati residential lot (P25 million), the Makati condominium (P39.98 million), and the Sampaloc real estate interest (P125.74 million). Such an inaccurate sum likewise occurred in 2007, when he declared a total asset of P100.97 million, which was P17 million more than the specified declared assets of the three properties.

Furthermore, Teodoro declared P19.55 million worth of vehicles, P11.9 million worth of jewelry, and P23.95 million worth of stocks.

Teodoro, who in 2007 held the post of Defense Secretary, campaigns with the slogan “Galing at Talino" (Skillfulness and Intelligence).

Luisita shareholder

Liberal Party standard bearer Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III had the least net worth among the six millionaire candidates with a declared net worth of P13.94 million in December 2007. As Tarlac second district representative in 1998, he declared a net worth of P8.7 million.

Aquino is a shareholder of the Cojuangco-owned Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac. In his latest SALN, he declared P300,000 worth of jewelry and P3.95 million worth of vehicles, which was specified as a BMW 650i coupe.

Furthermore, his stock portfolio is at P4.77 million while his “cash at hand” and “cash in bank” was at P323,198 and P2,910,163, respectively, including P400,000 worth of “firearms.”

Aquino, the son of the late Senator Ninoy Aquino and the late President Corazon Aquino, vowed in a recent TV commercial: “I will not steal.”

Old data, hidden wealth

Ex-President Joseph “Erap” Estrada of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (Force of the Filipino Masses) reported an older SALN which was at P35.86 million in 1999, because his term in public office abruptly ended in 2001 through a “People Power revolution.”

As mayor of San Juan City, Estrada first reported a P1.18 million net worth in his 1985 SALN while in 1992, he reported a P3.41 million net worth at the end of his term as senator.

However, PCIJ reported in 2000 several “family-owned” corporations and properties by Estrada which was used as evidence in the historic impeachment trial in the same year. According to PCIJ, properties and assets generated by these corporations amounted to P2 billion in 2000.

Estrada, who was convicted by the Sandiganbayan on plunder and perjury in 2007 but was pardoned by Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo months after, is popular for his slogan "Erap para sa mahirap (Erap for the poor).

"Most transparent"

Senator Richard Gordon of the Bagumbayan (New Nation) party declared a net worth of P25.52 million in 2007. As mayor of Olongapo City in 1992, he started in politics with a net worth of P8.3 million declared in the same year.

Gordon was described as having the “most transparent” SALN by the PCIJ, specifying stocks investments in 14 companies, which includes the Manila Electric Co. (MERALCO), Petron Corp., and San Miguel Corp., among others. He also declared P555,000 worth of appliances and furnitures, P1.32 million worth of vehicles, and P1.36 million cash at hand.

Gordon runs with a platform that emphasizes “transformation” and “discipline.”

Second richest senator

Though not included in the PCIJ report, independent presidential candidate Jamby Madrigal had a net worth of P148.9 million in 2007, making her the second richest senator next to rival Villar. When she started her Senate debut in 2004, she had declared a net worth of P118 million and was the fourth richest senator during that year.

Madrigal hails from a family of shipping moguls and vows to crush corruption and “elitist politics” once elected as President.
http://thepoc.net/breakin...