Mikey Arroyo laughs off DOJ watchlist order

MANILA (Updated 3:32 p.m.) -- Ang Galing Pinoy party-list Representative Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo said the statement of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima that he and his wife are "flight risks" is "laughable".

Arroyo, son of former President and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, issued the statement after the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a watch list order against him and his wife, Angela. This came after it found probable cause to charge the couple with tax evasion.

The watch list order shall be in effect for 60 days.

"The statement of De Lima that we are a flight risk is laughable. We faced the complaints when they were filed by actively participating in the preliminary investigation," the party-list lawmaker said.

"I am a member of Congress and I have a duty to my country and constituents. I could not and would not abandon my oath to serve them. We have no intention to leave the country because we have not done anything wrong," he added.

The DOJ said Tuesday it is filing the case against the Arroyo couple before the Court of Tax Appeals. The case is in relation the couple's alleged failure to declare the right income from 2003 to 2009.

The couple allegedly had a total tax liability of at least P 73.85 million, inclusive of interest and surcharges.

With the order, the couple should first seek government permission before travelling abroad. (Kathrina Alvarez/Sunnex)