The President believes De Lima has no one to blame but herself for the exposé when she appealed that her family be spared from the public scrutiny. “She created the scandal. She knows she is a public official. If you are in public office, De Lima, your life is an open book.”
President Duterte linked De Lima to the illegal drug trade by claiming that her driver, Ronnie Palisoc Dayan, was her bagman who allegedly collected drug payoffs for her. He also claimed that the senator was in a relationship with Dayan.
A Brgy.Galarin, Urbiztondo, Pangasinan resident said Dayan and his family used to live with his parents in a small house in their barangay. After he and his wife separated, his wife and children relocated to another province, he then moved to the 'white house' where he and De Lima were often seen.
Galarin barangay captain Rodolfo Licuanan claimed that De Lima would stay in Dayan’s house whenever she visited the town. Another resident said De Lima and Dayan would be seen at the public market buying vegetables and fish. “We would see them on weekends. She would arrive on a Saturday and leave on a Sunday,” a resident said.
Another house, which Dayan allegedly owns, an orange bungalow located about 100 meters from the white house, that took some time to build and was completed only in March 2016. Galarin barangay captain Licuanan, said Dayan’s children live in the orange house. “Dayan has two married children with their own families, while his youngest child is still in high school,” he said.
