Mangudadatus reject Zaldy's offer to become state witness

Maguindanao governor Esmael “Toto" Mangudadatu, who lost his wife and two sisters in the grisly November 2009 Maguindanao massacre, is not in favor of turning key suspect Zaldy Ampatuan into a state witness. In an interview aired over GMA News TV’s “Balitang Pilipinas" Tuesday afternoon, Mangudadatu said he thinks Zaldy has a “hidden agenda" in volunteering to testify against those implicated in the crime, which include his father Andal Ampatuan Sr. and brothers Andal Jr. and Sajid. “Malaki duda ko na may hidden agenda talaga si Zaldy, kasi ‘di nya gagawin ‘to," said Mangudadatu, a member of the Ampatuans’ rival clan. Aside from Mangudadatu’s wife and sisters, 54 others, including 32 journalists, were killed on Nov. 23, 2009 in Ampatuan town in what is considered as the most heinous case of political violence in the country.

Mangudadatu also said they have witnesses who can pin Zaldy, who was suspended as Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) governor after the massacre, to the crime. “Mayroon kaming witnesses na napakalakas ng kanilang statements laban kay Zaldy Ampatuan," he said. Mangudadatu’s brother, Khadafeh, an ARMM assemblyman, said the prosecution team should consult first with the families of the massacre victims before deciding on Zaldy’s offer. “If that will be the stand of the former ARMM regional governor, if he wants to be a state witness for the Maguindanao massacre, personally there is a need to consult the families of the victims first," said Khadafeh. Like his brother, Khadafeh also thumbed down the idea of turning Zaldy into a state witness. “We do not need a witness coming from the masterminds, the culprits. We have many witnesses who can prove that Zaldy is one of the masterminds of the gruesome Ampatuan massacre. We do not need the testimony of Zaldy Ampatuan in the Maguindanao massacre," he said. - KBK, GMA News