Senator Loren Legarda addressed her recent overseas trip, confirming in a Friday statement that she took medical leave from August 3 to 5.
Legarda urged the public to refrain from linking her travel to what she called “false and baseless” allegations involving potential graft and plunder charges.
The investigation, launched by the Office of the Ombudsman, also involves her son, Batangas 1st District Representative Leandro Leviste, who accompanied her on the trip and faces a separate inquiry by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
“I ask the public not to draw unwarranted conclusions from my travel or link it to the recent false and baseless allegations, which undeservedly besmirch a reputation that I have built over decades of public service,” Legarda said.
The Ombudsman opened its preliminary investigation on July 31 to examine the alleged misuse of an exclusive solar energy contract granted to Leviste.
Legarda was implicated due to her former tenure as chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, where she allegedly leveraged her influence to secure the contract establishing Leviste as the sole producer and distributor of solar power.
Firmly denying any wrongdoing, Legarda maintained that her long public record reflects consistent integrity and dismissed the claims as damaging and unfounded.
“Buong katiyakan kong sinasabi na ang mga ibinabalitang paratang ay lubos na hindi totoo at walang anumang batayan. Walang pondo ng bayan na sangkot. Handa kaming ilahad the katotohanan,” she added.