Ruby Tuason Yet To Undergo State Witness Procedure

Ruby Tuason, a former social secretary of former President Joseph Estrada who is a potential state witness in the Pork Barrel scam, will undergo normal procedures in the case, Malacañang said Saturday.

Ruby Tuason (L) with suspected PDAF scam queen Janet Napoles

According to Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda, Tuason has to meet some requirements before she could become a state witness.

"We have laws and standards to observe. For any criminal offense where a person who participated in the crime (and) whose participation is not the most guilty, the law allows them to testify and shed truth to the matter," he told the state-run dzRB Radyo ng Bayan.

Tuason submitted an affidavit to the Office of the Ombudsman on Friday, the day she arrived from the United States. In the document, she said she acted as a conduit for the kickbacks of Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada derived from the senators’ own Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).

The Ribbon Committee PDAF scam investigation will resume next week. Committee chairman Sen. Teofisto Guingona III said they will invite Tuason to the hearing "to shed more light on the issue."