MALACAÑANG officials yesterday cleared Senate President Manuel Villar Jr. of any wrongdoing in the alleged double funding for the extension of C-5 Road to Parañaque.

Chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Antonio Apostol and Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya Jr. said they are not aware of any provision in the Penal Code that has been violated in the alleged insertion of Villar of an additional P200 million funding for the same road program listed as another P200 million item in the 2008 budget.

Apostol and Andaya added that there was no additional funding because the double entries were discovered before a second allocation could be released.

Apostol added Villar was not a member of the bicameral conference committee that approved the 2008 budget.

He said it was a "simple case of misunderstanding and failure to double check the entries."

Andaya said he not clearing or absolving any one, just making it clear that it should be the Senate which should conduct an investigation.

"Kung sa pakiwari nila e nagkaroon ng lokohan sila sa loob, at the very least dun sa Ethics committee nila pwede sila magsampa ng reklamo sa kapwa senador nila para i-disiplina nila ang kasamahan nila kung mapapatunayan nga po na may tangkang lokohin ang isang, ang buong komite. Pero sa larangan ng Revised Penal Code wala pong krimen," Andaya said.

He said he will attend if summoned Deputy presidential spokesman Anthony Golez also said the Palace is leaving it to the Senate.

He, however, said that instead of discussing the issue in the media, charges should be filed in court or in any appropriate body.

Golez added that the important thing is there were no double releases in the past or in the future.

Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. said the questioned funding for the C-5 road has not been released. He said the project needs P2.7 billion.

Ebdane said he is also willing to appear in any inquiry.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson last week exposed the alleged anomaly surrounding the P200 million funding in the budget for 2008 for the extension of President Carlos Garcia avenue from South Luzon Expressway.

He said the same item appeared in the budget under another heading, "Urgent Infrastructure Including Local Projects," as "Construction of C-5 Road Extension from SLEX to Sucat Road" with an identical P200 million budget appropriation.

A former president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines expressed support for a Senate investigation, saying it would identify who was responsible for the insertion.