THE UNIVERSITY  of Santo Tomas  chapter of Youth Against Kurakot (YAK) launched an online petition declaring Senator Joel Villanueva persona non grata over his alleged involvement in another corruption scandal.

YAK-UST also seeks to declare two other UST alumni persona non grata: former Bulacan District Engineer Henry Alcantara (Engineering, 1994) and Representative Zaldy Co (MBA, 1998, Aquinas University—now UST-Legazpi).

“Senator Villanueva has a record of repeated corruption cases. In 2016, he was dismissed by then Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales over the misuse of P10 million in pork barrel funds during his time as a congressman. He still faces cases before the Sandiganbayan. Now, he is again accused of pocketing kickbacks from government projects,” said Brooks Relles, spokesperson of the UST chapter of YAK.

Relles added that Villanueva’s repeated denials and inconsistent statements only deepen public suspicion.

“He claimed he never lobbied DPWH officials, only to be exposed for following up projects with a DPWH district engineer. He said he doesn’t know any contractors, yet he allegedly received P20 million in campaign donations from one. He denied having budget insertions, only for Senator Ping Lacson to reveal otherwise under unprogrammed funds.”

“We call on UST and all Thomasians to support this petition in pursuit of truth and justice. Our nation suffers from floods and disasters made worse by corrupt leaders—grandstanding, dishonest politicians who must be held accountable and condemned.”