(Eagle News) — “Why should I?”
Solicitor General Jose Calida had this to say amid calls for him to resign over alleged conflict of interest stemming from his family’s security company bagging ₱261.39 million worth of contracts with various government agencies.
“Did I commit graft? No, I did not,” Calida said in an interview on CNN Philippines aired on Thursday, May 31.
According to Calida, he resigned as president and chairman of Vigilant Investigative and Security Agency Inc. on July 13, 2016.
While he still keeps 60 percent of the shares, he said “the option of divestment arises only when there is conflict of interest.”
“Not speculative conflict of interest… Since there is none, the law says I can resign only, which I did. There is no need to divest,” he said, noting that everything was “above board.”
He said he also made a declaration of his interest in the company in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).
“I’ve been a lawyer since 1974, I can handle all attacks. The question is, ‘Can they handle my counter-attack?'” Calida said.
Earlier, President Rodrigo Duterte defended Calida from the allegations, saying the Solicitor General’s security firm existed way before he was appointed to the government post.
“Bakit, wala na ba tayong katuwiran magnegosyo?..As long as we do not participate (in the management of the firm)…Why do you have to impute or attribute malice there?” he asked.
