Sunday, August 9, 2009
Arroyo entourage dined first in Washington for $15k
Posted on Sunday, August 09, 2009 by The Observer
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and her entourage first dined on "lobster, steak and fine wines" in Washington and spent $15,000 for the meal, a Washington Post blog reported on Wednesday before the controversial New York dinner where they spent $20,000.
It also reported that an "unidentified woman opened a handbag stuffed with cash" and paid for the tab. The information came out in a popular blog called The Reliable Source by Roxanne Roberts and Amy Argetsinger.
The Washington Post is the newspaper of record in the US capital and taken much more seriously than the tabloid New York Post, which broke the story about the Arroyo's lavish caviar and champagne dinner in New York's Le Cirque restaurant.
The column said the dinner at Bobby Van's Steakhouse on 15th Street in Washington occurred hours after President Arroyo met with US President Barack Obama last July 30. In Manila, Quezon Representative Danilo Suarez, who was with Mrs. Arroyo in Washington, confirmed that they dined with the President at Bobby Van's Steakhouse. He, however, did not confirm the reported $15,000 bill and was coy on who paid for it. "I doubt if you will spend that much there. Parang Italianni's yan e (It's just like Italianni's)," Suarez told GMANews.TV in a telephone interview.
He also said he could not remember how many they were, and whether they went to the restaurant hours after Mrs. Arroyo met with President Obama. Suarez refused to divulge more details, saying he and his colleagues in the House have decided not to issue any more statements about the President's dinners in the US since an "impeachment" case has been filed against her. Suarez may have been referring to the complaint letter of Akbayan Rep. Walden Bello asking the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate the New York dinner.
$15,000 tab According to the blog post entitled Heartburn Over Two Big Meals, "The group took over one of the restaurant's private rooms and dined on lobster, steak and fine wines; at the conclusion of the meal, an unidentified woman 
opened a handbag stuffed with cash, counted out bills and paid the $15,000 tab -- which included a generous tip." Among the items on the menu of Bobby Van's Steakhouse are Colorado Lamb Chops for $39.50, Ribeye Steak for $42, and Louis Roederer Cristal champagne (2002) for $575 per bottle.
The previous report about the New York dinner triggered a political firestorm, with oppositionists and bishops demanding investigations, and even Arroyo allies such as Sen. Miriam Santiago decrying the wining and dining as "excessive".
opened a handbag stuffed with cash, counted out bills and paid the $15,000 tab -- which included a generous tip." Among the items on the menu of Bobby Van's Steakhouse are Colorado Lamb Chops for $39.50, Ribeye Steak for $42, and Louis Roederer Cristal champagne (2002) for $575 per bottle. The previous report about the New York dinner triggered a political firestorm, with oppositionists and bishops demanding investigations, and even Arroyo allies such as Sen. Miriam Santiago decrying the wining and dining as "excessive".
At the time of this posting, Malacañang has not commented on the latest dinner report. Scandalous Opposition lawmakers quickly pounced on the information, with Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. describing the dinner as "scandalous" and "deplorable." "Isn't that scandalous?
What's more deplorable is the insensitivity of the diners to the plight of our people and a period of mourning which the President proclaimed," Pimentel said, referring to the nationwide mourning for the death of former President Corazon "Cory" Aquino last August 1. Bayan Muna party-list Representative Satur Ocampo said since the Washington Post is "a prestigious paper," the report puts into "serious question" Malacañang's denial on the alleged extravagance of the Arroyo party in the US.
"The more compelling is the reason for Malacañang to level with the people how they spent their own money or public money in their trips to Washington and New York," Ocampo told GMANews.TV in an interview.
Bello condemned what he called a "pattern of extravagance in the presidential party." “We are not surprised (about that Washington dinner) because this administration in known for being insensitive to the actual state condition of the people here. We are talking about (their) extravagance on a grand scale," he said.
Bello condemned what he called a "pattern of extravagance in the presidential party." “We are not surprised (about that Washington dinner) because this administration in known for being insensitive to the actual state condition of the people here. We are talking about (their) extravagance on a grand scale," he said.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No Response to "Arroyo entourage dined first in Washington for $15k"
Leave A Reply