Poe rebuffs alleged ‘political donations’ from Suncity Group

Philippine presidential candidate Sen. Grace Poe waves to supporters

Philippines’ independent presidential candidate Senator Grace Poe has allegedly accepted campaign contributions to a total of PHP150 million from a Macau-based junket operator, Suncity Group.
A Daily Tribune report claimed that documents they have obtained show that Poe’s camp accepted “political donations” from Suncity  Group, owned by Alvin Chau.
Suncity is currently one of the big four junket operations in Macau, controlling the majority of the local VIP baccarat market.
The company allegedly issued one cash voucher for PHP50 million (MOP8.5 million), which apparently had Grace Poe’s signature on it.
This was not the first time Poe has been involved in likely illegal contributions. She is already under fire after she admitted that the helicopter used in campaign sorties was lent to her by San Miguel Corp. and Helitrend Corp.
The presidential candidate may have violated two laws, the Corporation Code, and the Omnibus Election Code, both of which ban companies from making donations for political campaigns. The Corporation Code states that companies can make reasonable donations, but not “in aid of any political party or candidate or for purposes of partisan political activity,” while Omnibus Election Code prohibits contributions “for purposes of partisan political activity.”
However, the senator yesterday denied receiving donations from Sun City Holiday Resort, according to the Sun Star Manila.
“That is absolutely not true,” declared Poe in a chance interview at a public market in Iloilo city.
“The document they are releasing [is not true]. You know, I am just holding myself back but I think they should be held liable for what they are doing. […] That [the allegation] is not true and I challenge them [to prove it],” the senator added. Staff reporter