ZTE mess: Gordon wants Lozada, JDV III charged

Supposed whistle-blowers Rodolfo Noel “Jun" Lozada and Jose “Joey" de Venecia III and his father, former Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. will be included by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on the list of people who should be filed with graft charges in connection with the botched $329-million National Broadband Network (NBN) project of the Arroyo administration. (See: Looking Back: The NBN-ZTE controversy) Toward the end of Tuesday’s four-hour hearing on the NBN controversy, committee chairman Richard Gordon and De Venecia III engaged in a heated argument, wherein the senator finally replied to De Venecia III’s query on whether he and his father would be among those recommended charged by the panel. "I’ve been saying that I have three drafts, submitted by the committee. Yes, it will include everybody…including Mr. Lozada…I’m not saying that you are guilty, all three drafts say that all of you should be hailed to the Ombudsman and all of you should answer," Gordon told De Venecia III during the panel's final hearing on the issue. De Venecia III heads Amsterdam Holdings Inc., a losing bidder in the NBN project, which was bagged by China’s Zhong Xing Telecommunications (ZTE) Corp. through alleged brokering by former Commission on Elections chief Benjamin Abalos and the President’s husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo. Both Abalos and Mr. Arroyo vehemently denied the accusation. Gordon accused De Venecia III of violating Republic Act No. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act when the latter tried to enter into government project while his father was still Speaker of the House of Representatives. The senator said that under section 5 of R.A. 3019, "It shall be unlawful for the spouse or for any relative, by consanguinity or affinity, within the third civil degree, of the President of the Philippines, the Vice-President of the Philippines, the President of the Senate, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to intervene, directly or indirectly, in any business, transaction, contract or application with the Government." Aside from Lozada and the De Venecias, Abalos, former National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) director general Romulo Neri, and deputy executive secretary Manuel Gaite will also be recommended for prosecution, according to Gordon. De Venecia III accused Abalos of offering him $10 million to back out from bidding in the NBN project. Neri had testified with the Senate in September 2007 that Abalos offered him a P200-million bribe for the then NEDA chief to recommend the approval of the NBN-ZTE deal to President Arroyo. Abalos denied the claims of De Venecia III and Neri. Gaite was the one who gave Lozada P500,000 when the latter went to Hong Kong in January 2008 supposedly to evade testifying at the Senate inquiry on the NBN-ZTE deal. Why not the Arroyos? De Venecia III assailed Gordon’s statement, saying the latter should have focused on claims linking the President’s husband to the NBN-ZTE anomaly, instead of pinning down whistle-blowers.
"Why are you making public statements that (my father and I) ang dapat kasuhan sa ZTE transaction when you very well know na biktima ako, at si Mike ang nambiktima, at ‘yon dapat ang tingnan?. Mike Arroyo should be subpoenaed. Umiikot na siya sa mundo and he looked healthy," said De Venecia III. (Why are you making public statements that my father and I should be the ones charged when you very well know that I was a victim, and Mike was the victimizer, and that should be the one pursued in the investigation? Mike Arroyo should be subpoenaed. He has been traveling around the world and he looked healthy). “Katulad namin ni Jun Lozada, nakahiga na kami sa floor, pinagsisipa pa kami. That we, whistle-blowers, will be punished for telling the truth. Nuns here…the civil society want to hear the truth. Ano ba ang pinupuntahan nito…puro De Venecia at Abalos? You never say Mike Arroyo and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo," added De Venecia III. (Like Jun Lozada and I, we’re already lying on the floor but we’re still being kicked. That we, whistle-bowers, will be punished for telling the truth. Nuns here…the civil society want to hear the truth. Where will this investigation go when you keep on discussing about De Venecia and Abalos? You never say Mike Arroyo and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.) For his part, Lozada claimed that the Senate investigation "failed to come out with the truth." Gordon asked about Lozada’s frequent foreign travels with Neri. The senator inquired if Lozada stayed at five-star hotels and had expensive meals during his trips with Neri in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, among other places. He also asked Lozada, former head of the Philippine Forest Corporation, if it was proper for him to be involved in the review of government deals, such as the NBN project assigned to him by Neri. "Ayokong mag-usap ng pulitika. Gusto ko na pag-usapan dito ay katotohanan. Hindi pwedeng ganito-ganito na matapos ito," Lozada told reporters after the hearing. (I don't want to talk about politics. I want truth to be discussed here. I don't want this to end this way.) - GMANews.TV