FILE PHOTO: Former Sen. Leila De Lima (Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau)
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� Former Sen. Leila De Lima told the Supreme Court on Friday that her senatorial campaign did not receive money from a lawyer that the high court had recently disbarred.
On Wednesday, the high court disbarred lawyer Demosthenes Tecson for keeping the rest of his clients鈥� awarded compensation as attorney鈥檚 fees and allegedly as a contribution to De Lima鈥檚 campaign kitty.
鈥淚 categorically state that this claim is utterly false and has no basis in fact. I have had no dealings, financial or otherwise, with Mr. Tecson, nor have I ever authorized or received any such contributions from him. I do not even know him,鈥� De Lima said in a letter to the SC on Friday.
Further, the former senator asked the high court for a 鈥減ublic clarification鈥� that the claim involving her was false.
READ: Disbarred lawyer kept P60M from clients, 鈥榞ave鈥� to De Lima kitty
鈥淚 take grave exception to being wrongfully implicated in the Supreme Court Spokesperson鈥檚 press release on a case that has nothing to do with me,鈥� De Lima said.
鈥淚t is profoundly unjust for my name to be dragged into the misconduct of a lawyer who has been stripped of his professional standing precisely because of his ethical violations,鈥� she added.