By Michael Lim Ubac
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Saying that a blanket denial was not enough, presidential candidate Manuel Villar on Saturday challenged his main rival, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy†Aquino of the Liberal Party, to undergo a psychiatric test and other medical examinations to gauge his sanity and fitness to become President.
To prove that he was not singling out Aquino, Villar, the standard-bearer of the Nacionalista Party, said that he, too, was willing undergo a "comprehensive physical and mental examination in order to ascertain [our] fitness to occupy the highest office of the land.â€
If Aquino indeed sought the help of a psychiatrist in 1996, Villar said, it was “the right of the people to know since he is running for President. Denial should not be technical. This is a very serious matter.â€
The challenge, which Villar issued in an interview on dzMM's “Punto por Punto†program, was also directed at the other presidential and vice presidential candidates.
Unlike Aquino, Villar claimed he had no qualms undergoing a battery of psychological and physical tests.
“Noynoy cannot hide behind his claim to privacy because the mental state of anyone who aspires to be President or Vice President is a matter of public concern,†Villar, adding, “There’s a far more dangerous scenario than the blind leading the blind, and that is for a mentally challenged person to lead a nation of millions.â€
However, Villar, who was lagging behind Aquino in the surveys, stressed that challenging Aquino to undergo medical exams did not mean that the NP was the source of the purported psychological report on the state of Aquino's mental health.
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