Political commentator and blogger Sass Rogando Sasot retracted her Facebook post about National Bureau of Investigation Melvin Matibag and Rep. Ann Matibag (Laguna First District).
The pro-Duterte blogger on Tuesday, July 28, issued an apology to the couple after claiming they owned a four-bedroom property in the United States worth more than $1 million.
“That post was about the 26023 Baldwin Place in California that is listed at homes.com, a major U.S. online residential real estate marketplace owned by CoStar Group. Homes.com listed it as owned by a couple named ‘Melvin Matibag and Anna Marie Matibag,'” Sasot wrote on Facebook.
“Public records obtained from the property’s listing at www.homes.com reveal a complex paper trail of mortgages, deeds, and a last-minute legal maneuver that raises urgent questions about whether the couple fully disclosed their U.S. assets in their legally mandated Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN),” she previously wrote on July 22.
“The house, nestled in the affluent Stevenson Ranch community near top-rated schools including Stevenson Ranch Elementary and West Ranch High School, represents a significant financial commitment for any Filipino family-let alone public officials whose salaries are a matter of public record,” the blogger added.
Sasot said that she cross-verified the information she found at Homes.com with other public records in the US.
“These two people are not NBI Director Melvin Matibag and Congresswoman Anne Marie Matibag,” she wrote.
“The Melvin Matibag and Anna Marie Matibag owners of 26023 Baldwin Place in California just happened to be coincidentally named after the NBI Director and the Congressman,” Sasot added.
“The Melvin Matibag owner of 26023 Baldwin Place in California is Melvin Benjoso Matibag (while the NBI Director is Melvin Alvarez Matibag); while the Anna Marie Matibag owner is Anna Marie Laman Matibag (while the Congresswoman is Ann Lourdes Garcia Matibag),” she further said.
“I apologize to NBI Director Melvin Matibag and Congresswoman Ann Matibag for this error. The original post has already been retracted,” the blogger concluded.
Matibag, meanwhile, denied owning a mansion in the US, saying that the owner has a different middle name.
“I categorically deny. Wala kaming properties sa abroad. ‘Yung properties namin, all declared in my SALN. And you can get a copy of my SALN. Andiyan naman ‘yan. Andoon lahat diyan,” he said in a press conference on July 28.
Matibag added that the claim was “totally fake news.”
He further said that such allegations sought to affect his credibility as a witness for the House prosecution panel in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Matibag testified on allegations that Duterte violated the 1987 Philippine Constitution, committed high crimes and betrayed public trust by allegedly contracting someone to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos and cousin, former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
