The camp of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada broke its silence on this recent issue
Senator Jinggoy Estrada released a statement explaining the condition of the office he vacated at the Senate building, which is set to become the new office of Senate President Pro Tempore Vicente “Tito” Sotto III.
Sotto said that he was surprised to see that his new office was “stripped” as fixtures were removed. A Senate source stated that even toilet bowls were removed, as well as the light switches.
Following this issue, Senator Ping Lacson shared a photo of Sotto, saying that he is just using a monobloc chair and table, and a kerosene lamp, because of the removed furniture and fixtures.
Because of this, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada received criticism, and some netizens questioned if he or his staff had the right to do that.
Based on the report from Bandera, Estrada’s camp released a statement, responding to this issue. It was stated that the items removed from the sixth-floor office were purchased by Estrada using his personal funds.
Furthermore, the items that will be moved to his new office on the building’s fifth floor were also bought personally by him.
It was said that Atty. Racquel Mejia, Estrada’s chief of staff, also notified Sotto’s camp regarding the plan to remove the items and other materials, such as floor tiles, glass panels, light fixtures, and cabinets.
Estrada’s camp also assured that no public funds were wasted. His lawyer further stated that the controversial room was bare when Estrada occupied it in 2022.
He added that the resident auditor from the Commission on Audit (COA) was aware of the steps they had taken.
As of this writing, the camp of Sen. Tito Sotto has yet to release a statement on this explanation from the camp of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada.
