Mayor Paz Radaza (CDN FILE PHOTO)
The heat is on for Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza after a criminal complaint was filed against her by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) over alleged fake loans in the shuttered Subangdaku Rural Bank where she served as president.
In a press conference yesterday, Radaza said the case has nothing to do with her current role as city mayor. She begged off answering in detail until she gets a copy of the complaint filed last January 13 with the Department of Justice.
“Dili pa ko basta na lang maka-tubag ani ilabi na wala pa ko makadawat og kopya sa complaint gikan sa DOJ (I cannot just answer this especially that I haven’t yet received a copy of the complaint from the DOJ),” Radaza told reporters.
She said she would call for another press conference as soon as she receives her copy.
She said she was aware of harsh criticism against her after news of the PDIC complaint broke, saying these have taken on a political color.
“As mayor I do well in my job. I’m transparent and dedicated to public service. I do consultative governance and I don’t have any corruption cases,” Radaza said.
As president of the Rural Bank of Subangdaku Inc., Radaza said she only had one share in the bank while the rest were owned by a major corporate family. She said she has nothing to do with decisions on loans made by the loan committee where she is a member.
Radaza said she was confident she will be eventually cleared as she has documents to prove her innocence.
The PDIC, in a press statement, said it filed the criminal complaint against Radaza and the bank’s former loans manager for conspiring and creating 6,051 fictitious loans amounting to almost P2.6 billion from 2004 to 2008.
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