Estrada critics in military, police receive threats

Military and police officials believed to be anti-administration are reportedly being "threatened and intimidated" by their superiors.

Sources told The STAR yesterday the administration is closely monitoring the activities of Marine Lt. Gen. Edgardo Espinosa, the commandant of the Joint Command and Staff College in Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.

Sources said Espinosa, former chief of the Armed Forces Southern Command, has been perceived as a "possible" administration critic after he was relieved of his command in Mindanao last year.

"We got information that he (Espinosa) is being monitored for reasons unclear to us except that he is perceived as an administration critic," the sources said.

Military officials at Camp Aguinaldo told The STAR yesterday Espinosa had asked to be relieved as Southcom chief because of personal reasons.

However, sources said the reason is that Espinosa had a "falling out" with Zamboanga businessman Lee Peng Wei, who is said to be close to President Estrada.

Espinosa was a classmate of retired Deputy Director General Roberto Lastimoso at the Philippine Military Academy (PMA). Both belong to Class 1967.

Lastimoso, who was relieved last year as acting chief of the Philippine National Police, is now a prosecution witness against President Estrada in the impeachment trial.

The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force is also reportedly monitoring junior military officers belonging to PMA Class 1993 for unknown reasons.

"We don’t know why they are being subjected to this monitoring if this indeed is true," the sources said.

Last week, Senior Superintendent Jaime Caringal was relieved as chief of the directorial staff of Police Regional Office 4 and reassigned to the Cordillera Autonomous Region as Ifugao police director.

Caringal, a member of PMA Class 1976, is a son-in-law of former Army chief retired Lt. Gen. Fortunato Abat.

Abat, chairman of the Federation of Retired commissioned Officers and Enlisted Soldiers (FORCES), has been leading other retired generals in calling for the resignation of President Estrada.