WE like to set the record straight on the misleading and baseless claims made by Charlie V. Manalo against Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson, in his Manila Times column, titled “From bravado to childish tantrums,” on Dec. 19, 2025.

Mr. Manalo’s attacks are wide-ranging, from Senator Lacson’s conduct of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee investigation into anomalous flood control projects to his consistent efforts to rid the national budget of “pork.” Yet his claims are long on insinuation and short on facts.