Defense apologizes for ‘Delia’ fiasco

Two members of President Estrada’s defense panel apologized yesterday to the Senate impeachment tribunal for the controversial manner of their presentation of the real Delia Rajas.

Lawyers Philip Sigfrid Fortun and his brother Raymond Parsifal made the apology in a response to an order that they explain why the impeachment court should not cite them for contempt.

Senator-judges Franklin Drilon, Rodolfo Biazon and Renato Cayetano asked the two lawyers to make the response after the Fortuns employed a cross-examination technique on Jan. 8 that the three senators thought to be misleading.

The Fortuns were given the show-cause order after they asked Land Bank branch manager Caridad Rodenas to identify from the gallery one Delia Rajas, who Rodenas said had opened an account that was allegedly used to divert tobacco excise tax money.

The court later learned that the Rajas who opened the account was not in the gallery and that the "real" Delia Rajas was actually a cook of the family of presidential crony Charlie "Atong" Ang.

The three senators felt that the Fortuns pulled a "dirty trick" on the impeachment and may have violated the lawyers’ Code of Professional Responsibility.

But in a 13-page comment on the show-cause order, the Fortuns claimed that they did not violate the ethical code because they even caused the "truth" to be revealed to the court.

"The truth thus surfaced in Sigfrid Fortun’s utilization of the aforesaid technique of cross examination, which as shown was allowed by the court and authorized by the rules," the lawyers said in their comment.

"It appeared to them (the Ang family) that that woman masquerading as Delia Rajas was an accomplice of (Ilocos Sur) Governor Luis Singson in the misappropriation of funds," the lawyers added.

Singson had earlier testified that Rajas, together with a certain Eleuterio Tan and Alma Alfaro, were allegedly directed by Ang to collect some P120 million which was diverted from the tobacco excise tax fund of Ilocos Sur.

The 11-man House prosecution panel had sought to prove through Rodenas’ testimony that Rajas opened an account at the Land Bank branch in Shaw Blvd., Mandaluyong City and used the account to withdraw some P50 million from the tobacco fund.

Rodenas, who assisted Rajas when she opened the account, had claimed that she could positively identify Rajas in court but after several minutes going around the court gallery, Rodenas said the Rajas who opened the account was not in the gallery.

Unknown to the court, Raymond Fortun had caused the "real" Rajas, a domestic helper of Ang’s mother, to sit in the gallery.