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By Jomar Canlas, Reporter
The Justice department sought
coercive powers in its investigation into the aborted broadband deal
after being snubbed several times by those whom it had invited to
testify on alleged irregularities in the $330-million project.
Deputy Executive Secretary Manuel
Gaite and Erwin Santos, officer in charge of the Philippine Forest
Corp., did not show up in Friday’s scheduled hearing.
Gaite is accused of having given
a witness to the alleged irregularities P500,000 in cash for
supposed expenses in Hong Kong. The witness, Rodolfo “Jun”
Lozada Jr., later returned the money to the Senate. He earlier
admitted that he flew to Hong Kong to evade a warrant of arrest that
the senators had issued against him.
Santos had accused Lozada of
influence-peddling in Philippine Forest, of which Lozada was a
former CEO.
While he wanted to cooperate in
the Justice department’s investigation, Gaite said in a letter he
had sent through his lawyer, he cannot contribute anything to the
case.
“We respectfully decline the
invitation. Our client has had no participation whatsoever, either
in the negotiations with ZTE Corp. pertaining to the [national
broadband network] project or in the signing of the supply
agreement,” according to Gaite’s letter, referring to ZTE Corp.
of China that won the bidding for the project over two other
proponents.
Santos also snubbed the hearing,
explaining that he had a prior engagement with investors.
The no-shows irked the Justice
panel handling the probe.
Undersecretary Ernesto Pineda,
who heads the group, said they will ask Justice Secretary Raul
Gonzalez to propose to President Gloria Arroyo to issue an executive
order that will compel Gaite and Santos to attend or risk being
cited for contempt.
“If there can be an executive
order, we can coerce some witnesses to come under pain of some
penalty. We will request Secretary Gonzalez if we can be equipped
with such coercive powers,” Pineda added.
Lozada and Romulo Neri also
snubbed another scheduled hearing last week.
Lozada, supposedly a key witness
to alleged brokering for kickbacks from the broadband deal, said he
does not recognize the authority of the Justice department because
of the government’s alleged biases against him.
Neri, acting chairman of the
Commission on Higher Education, backed out supposedly after reading
reports that the department was considering filing a case against
him.
He was the director general of
the National Economic and Development Authority when the broadband
deal was being negotiated. According to him, he told President
Arroyo of an alleged attempt to bribe him in exchange for his
approval of the project. He said he also told the President about
the offer and that she in turn told him not to accept the kickback
but for him to approve the project anyway.
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