Cimatu: I received medals, not money, as 'pabaon'

Former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Roy Cimatu on Friday said he has indeed collected "pabaon" from the military but these were medals and not money. In his first appearance in the Senate, Cimatu reiterated his earlier statement that he never received any "pay-off" when he retired from the service. Former budget officer Lt. Col. George Rabusa earlier claimed that Cimatu received at least P80 million in pay-offs. Rabusa said it was former military comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia who instructed him to prepare the P80 million to be handed over to Cimatu. Garcia is currently out on bail for his 2005 plunder case, involving the former military comptroller's alleged amassing of P300 million while in service. "Inaamin ko po ako ay nagkaroon ng pabaon... Ang pabaon sa akin ay isang box ng humigit kumulang na 40 medals given to me in my years of servcie as sundalo," Cimatu said. The retired general then drew out a photograph of all the medals he has received. "These medals I have never traded them for all the reasons in the world," he said, adding that no amount of money could replace the recognition he has received as a soldier. "I shall never allow anyone to debase and degrade these priceless honors," Cimatu said. He said he was prepared to face any investigation on supposed military fund scams. However, Cimatu said he never received money from public funds that he used for personal purposes. Earlier in the day, Cimatu's former executive assistant admitted receiving P10 million monthly from Rabusa in 2002. Although finding the release of the money "unusual," Brig. Gen. Benito de Leon said he received the amount just the same. The money, he added, was used for military operations in Basilan against Abu Sayyaf. During Friday's inquiry, Cimatu stressed: "It was not for me. I did not use it for personal purposes. Pang-opisina at emergency po iyan... God is my witness." Cimatu is among the generals implicated by Rabusa in the supposed "pabaon" controversy. Former military chief Gen. Angelo Reyes, who was also linked in the mess, committed suicide at the height of a Senate investigation on the controversy. Unmanned aerial vehicle During the same hearing, Cimatu also denied ordering Rabusa to produce $2 million for the purchase of an unmanned aerial vehicle in 2001, saying it was not his "nature" to do so. "Nasa tabi lang ako," said Cimatu, about a meeting inside a supposed "war room" where the a meeting was held for the purchase of the equipment. Cimatu said the UAV was supposed to have been used to locate the whereabouts of American missionary Gracia BUrnham, who was held hostage by armed bandits in Mindanao in 2001. Cimatu said the release of the $2 million was for the demonstration of the unmanned vehicle. He added that the UAV eventually ended up getting damaged in a crash. — VVP/RSJ, GMA News