By Joyce Pangco Pa?ares

ILIGAN CITY?Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman said he was open to an amicable settlement with the De la Paz family, after both sides filed complaints over a brawl in an Antipolo golf course.

Pangandaman, whose sons Nasser Jr. and Hussein are accused of beating up the elder De la Paz and his 14-year-old son over a disagreement on the fairway of the Valley Golf and Country Club, said ?common friends? had offered to act as mediators.

?Some have already begun calling me up... I?m open to that, but I just would like to emphasize that we did not instigate the incident. My sons did not instigate the incident,? Pangandaman said in an interview at the Macapagal ancestral house before the start of the first Cabinet meeting of the year.

Nasser Jr., mayor of Masiu, Lanao del Norte, and Hussein say the De la Pazes started the fight.

The De la Paz family says the mayor had his bodyguards rough up the father after he complained about their playing through, and then punched the 14-year-old in the face when he pleaded for the beating to stop.

Secretary Pangandaman repeated his apology to the De la Paz family and to the public for ?this very unfortunate incident,? but said an investigation was ongoing.

Pangandaman, who has been criticized for failing to stop his son from attacking the De la Pazes, said Nasser Jr. had acted in self-defense, and that it was other party that started the brawl. He said the elder De la Paz first hit Nasser Jr. with an umbrella, prompting him, his brother and bodyguards to retaliate.

The agrarian reform chief said he had not made any effort to reach out to the De la Pazes as ?it might be construed? as an admission of fault.

Pangandaman said he still enjoyed President Arroyo?s the confidence despite the controversy generated by the brawl.

He also appealed to the online community to stop demonizing his family.

?I would just like to appeal to the bloggers. My family is very much affected by this, and I would just like to appeal to them to stop this,? he said.

?Anyway, cases were filed already and my sons have also filed a case. Let?s leave it at that and let?s just await for the outcome of this case.?

De la Paz lawyer Raymond Fortun said they would not include the agrarian reform chief in the case, but they would go to the Ombudsman to seek a preventive suspension of the secretary ?so as not to derail the investigation.?

Neither the secretary nor his son, the mayor, were at the National Bureau of Investigation yesterday to give their version of the brawl.

The secretary was unable to attend because he was at the Cabinet meeting in Mindanao, while the mayor was in his town for an ?important function,? a lawyer for the Pangandamans said. With Jing Villamente