The Philippine vice president was quite straightforward when he revealed his plan to run for presidency. “I don’t want to be a hypocrite. Yes, I will run for president,” he said Wednesday.

    Philippine vice president declares candidacy

    CONTROVERSIAL Philippine Vice President Jejomar Binay on Wednesday angrily lashed out at President Benigno Aquino as he declared his determination to run for president in 2016.

    Binay, 73, a former staunch supporter of the Aquino family, accused the ruling administration of practising “twisted justice” and of failing to improve life for the poor in the Southeast Asian archipelago of 100 million.

    “This is what our people are seeking: a government that is the opposite of the callous and failing government that we have today,” Binay, who previously refrained from directly attacking Aquino, said.

    His remarks came after he resigned from his Cabinet post Monday as special adviser on the millions of Filipino workers overseas.

    It also comes amid efforts of a government anti-corruption agency to charge him for corruption allegedly committed during his many years as mayor of the financial district of Makati before he became vice president.

    Binay said the charges were politically motivated to keep him from running in the 2016 presidential elections.

    Aquino, who is barred by law from running for another term, is widely expected to endorse a successor from his own Liberal Party in 2016. Binay is not a member of that party.

    “If your plan was to prevent me from running for president in 2016, you have made a mistake. I do not run from a fight,” Binay said.

    He assailed Aquino’s record, saying that only a small elite part of Aquino’s allies had benefited from the economic growth and policies under the president.

    “This is the twisted justice of the administration today,” he said.

    Addressing the public, he said, “I will be with you through thick and thin but now, as the leader of the opposition.”

    Aquino’s spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that during the five years in Aquino’s Cabinet, he had never criticized the administration’s policies.

    “He has made the unfortunate choice to commence his presidential run with statements that he could have otherwise discussed with the president as a Cabinet member but chose not to,” Lacierda said in a statement.

    Under Philippine law, the president and vice president are elected separately, which allowed Aquino and Binay to be voted in as president and vice president, respectively, in 2010 even though they were not running mates.

    However, Aquino, in keeping with longstanding political tradition, appointed Binay to his Cabinet.

    Surveys conducted early in his six-year term as vice president showed strong support for Binay; however, this faltered after he had been pilloried in the Senate and the media amid allegations that his family was involved in defrauding the government through onerous contracts that include the construction of buildings in Makati City.

    Former Makati City Vice Mayor Ernesto Mercado had accused Binay and his family of getting kickbacks from the P2.126 billion (US$47.1 million) contract for the construction of a parking building in the city.

    Apart from allegations that he used the Senate as a forum, Aquino also ordered a probe into the corruption allegations through the Department of Justice.

    In early May, the Anti-Money Laundering Council ordered a freeze on the bank accounts and investments of the Binays and their associates.

    The Binays reportedly have P11 billion in their various bank accounts in the Philippines as well as abroad.

    But Binay said he is undeterred by the recent developments.

    Salgado said despite the relentless attacks from his opponents, Binay remains thankful for the “unwavering support” from Filipinos.

    Despite the charges against him, surveys have shown that Binay comes at or near the top of potential presidential winners in 2016.

    Born in November 1942, Binay is the 15th vice president of the Philippines. He was the longest-serving mayor of Makati City.

    Binay took up graduate studies at the National Defense College of the Philippines, the Command and General Staff College, the Center for Research and Communication (now known as the University of Asia and the Pacific), the Joint Services Command Staff College, and the UP School of Urban and Regional Planning. He also received a certificate from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania after completing the International Housing Finance Program. He was a senior executive fellow of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

    Upon taking and passing the bar exam, Binay chose a different path from being just a lower, that of being a human rights lawyer. During the Martial Law period, he lawyered for political prisoners detained unjustly by the Marcos regime in the 1970s.

    Soon, he co-founded, along with other fellow human rights lawyers such as Joker Arroyo and Rene Saguisag, a national movement of lawyers known as MABINI to coordinate their efforts in advancing the cause of nationalism and, protecting human rights.

    For helping political prisoners, many MABINI lawyers, including Binay, were imprisoned.

    Binay initially announced his bid for the presidency for the 2010 elections during his 66th birthday celebration at the Makati City Hall but abandoned his bid in order to give way to the re-election bid of former President Joseph Estrada. He eventually became Estrada’s running mate.

    He took his oath as vice president in 2010, becoming the first local government official to do so.

    During the 2010 campaign, Binay admitted to having an extramarital affair, which almost cost him his marriage. He complained about photos of his mistress that were leaked on the Internet, saying the tactic was a reaction to his rise in his poll ratings.

    He is married to Elenita and has six children.(SD-Agencies)