Wife of Comelec chief earlier claimed her husband has 'unexplained wealth'

  MANILA - Accusations and counter-accusations marked the raging saga between Philippine Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Andres Bautista and his wife, Patricia Paz "Tish" Bautista. After earlier claiming that her husband has unexplained wealth amounting to almost 1 billion pesos, Mrs. Bautista also accused the Comelec chairman of receiving commissions from DivinaLaw, one of the Philippines' fast-growing law offices, for referring clients to them. Mr. Bautista, for his part, accused his wife of alleged infidelity and extortion. Mrs. Bautista had alleged in an affidavit submitted to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) last week that she had discovered bank and real property documents, and several passbooks in Mr. Bautista's name that were not included in his 2016 Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN). Mr. Bautista had declared a net worth of P176.3 million in his SALN. Mrs. Bautista said in the same sworn statement that she found several commission sheets with various amounts and checks purportedly issued by lawyer Nilo Divina, managing partner of DivinaLaw, to Mr. Bautista for referring companies like Smartmatic, Baseco and United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) to the law office. Smartmatic, a Venezuelan election technology supplier, supplied the ballot counting machines used in the elections in 2010, 2013 and last year. Baseco and UCPB were among the companies sequestered by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) – an agency created in 1986 to recover the ill-gotten wealth of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos and his cronies. Bautista chaired the PCGG from 2010 to 2015. Mrs. Bautista has submitted the commission sheets to the NBI last Aug. 1. One of the commission sheets, according to a Philippine Daily Inquirer report, showed "consultancy fees" amounting to 1.224 million pesos from "Cebu Int'l School, Miascor, Baseco, Cocolife and Vasquez" while other sheets contained amounts ranging from P560 to as high as P95,663. It could not be verified by the Inquirer however which among the amounts were commissions that were allegedly received by Mr. Bautista. Mrs. Bautista said Divina was "one of her husband's best friends." Responding to accusations made by his wife about the commissions, Bautista told the Inquirer in a phone interview on Monday that the monies were "not public funds." "It's not a commission but it's like a referral. This is private and does not involve government. It was an arrangement we had even before I joined (the) government but these are small amounts," he said. Bautista also said the "referral fees" were paid "but never for companies where I will have potential conflict of interest" as a government official. He accused his wife of adding details and fabricating the documents she claims to have against him. "I question the genuineness of the documents. These are small amounts but they are reflected on my SALN. And the taxes are paid for all of these," Bautista said. Mr. Bautista also said he would sue his wife this week. With regard Divina, Mr. Bautista also told the Inquirer that he was "close" to the lawyer and that the latter is not only one of his lawyers but also serves as counsel to his stepfather-in-law, Dr. Daniel Vasquez. He also said Divina is also his eldest son's godfather. Divina was unavailable for comment when reached by the Inquirer but a staffer said he is preparing legal action. Meanwhile, Mr. Bautista accused his wife of attempting to extort money from him and of having an affair. "I am extremely disappointed over the recent actuations of my estranged wife, particularly making false accusations against me and allowing herself to be used to serve the political agenda of some opportunistic people. Her allegations are all lies, and I categorically deny all of them," he said in a statement issued on Sunday, adding that the issue was marred by politics. "It is my hope that we could still fix our marital problems, or at least address them in a civil and decent manner. President Duterte himself has graciously mediated our problem for which I am extremely grateful. But her recent statements and actions manifest that she has no desire to save the marriage." Mr. Bautista said his wife was being used by "certain people and groups to promote a political agenda designed to cast aspersions on me and the Comelec's work in the 2016 elections." "It is apparent that she and her longtime lover concocted this extortion plan with guidance from ill-intentioned lawyers," he said. Mr. Bautista said further that he is ready to answer all the accusations against him and he will step down if the controversy is affecting the Comelec. Mr. Bautista, who was appointed by then President Benigno Aquino III, can be removed from office by impeachment or he can resign. 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