Lacson: Corpus getting frantic

Embattled Sen. Panfilo Lacson said yesterday that his principal accuser, military intelligence chief Col. Victor Corpus, was getting frantic in attempts to nail him on drug charges.

Lacson said Corpus and his men were even trying to persuade two convicted drug lords to testify against him at the Senate investigation prompted by Corpus’ accusations.

Lacson identified the alleged drug lords as Phoebe Lingbawan, alias Phoebe Astudillo, an inmate at the Women’s Correctional, and Raymond Tan who is doing time at the New Bilibid Prisons in Muntinlupa City.

"I shudder at the thought of what Corpus and this go-vernment are willing to trade with these drug traffickers who have been found guilty beyond reasonable doubt in exchange for destroying me, my reputation, my family, and more importantly, the country’s institutions," Lacson said.

He expressed optimism, however, that he would overcome what he called his persecution by the Arroyo administration.

Lacson branded Astudillo as the mistress of a former lawyer of slain communist rebel leader Conrado Balweg.

Astudillo was reportedly arrested for drug trafficking shortly after the 1986 people power revolt that toppled the Marcos dictatorship.

She was tagged by a former detainee of the Phi-lippine National Police Narcotics Group (NarcGroup), Rebecca Agana, as the supplier of shabu for prisoners who in turn peddled the contraband to outsiders.

Agana was also one of the witnesses presented by Corpus to establish Lacson’s links with the illegal drug trade, along with S/Sgt. Juanito Pascual who was one of those arrested during a raid on Tan’s safehouse in Sariaya, Quezon on Aug. 24 last year.

Pascual said Tan dropped the name of Lacson in an attempt to wiggle out of the situation.

Lacson said Corpus wanted Tan to point at him as the brains behind the huge drug shipment confiscated in Sariaya.

In another development, a Chinese trader linked to Lacson denied accusations that he was involved in a syndicate that smuggled Chinese prostitutes into the country.

"I am not involved in any illegal activities. Neither am I involved in the facilitation of visas of Chinese (nationals) from the mainland," Willy Keng said.

Keng also cleared another Lacson pal, Kamsim "Kim" Wong, of the same allegations.

Former Manila Councilor Chika Go has implicated Keng in the alleged multimillion-peso anomaly in the issuance of special investor resident visas (SIRV).

Go said the spurious SIRVs were being issued through the Balikbayan Shopping Mall at Clark Field in Pampanga.

Go also linked Keng to the alleged murder of Paulo Pataksil, an agent of the Bureau of Investments-SIRV.

Pataksil was reportedly killed while in the middle of his investigation of the SIRV irregularity.

Records showed that Pataksil went missing before All Soul’s Day in 1999 while trying to verify the identities of SIRV holders from Binondo, Manila.

His decomposing body was later found at the boundary of Bokod, Benguet and Kayapam, Nueva Vizcaya on Nov. 8, 1999.

In a radio interview, Keng pointed out the he and Go had a falling out about five years ago after their joint venture collapsed.

Senior Inspector Florentino Bagallon, then head of the Manila City Hall anti-crime and inspection, has testified that a November 1997 raid on the Top Ten Season Food Restaurant and the Narcissus KTV above it yielded shabu and uncovered a prostitution den.

Wong’s lawyer, former Solicitor General Frank Chavez, said the accusations were "pure fiction."

Senate probe being screwed — Biazon

Opposition Sen. Rodolfo Biazon rued that the Senate "is being screwed" in its investigation of accusations of involvement in criminal acts against Lacson.

Biazon refused, however, to elaborate.

He cited as example the alleged conflicting reports submitted by Col. Mario Chan of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) on Lacson’s alleged foreign bank accounts.

Lacson has claimed he obtained a copy of Chan’s report which indicated that United States Customs authorities have declared government witness Mary Rose Ong alias "Rosebud" a witness without credibility.

Corpus pointed out, however, that what Lacson got was an "unauthorized" report of Chan.

Corpus declined to divulged Chan’s authentic report, saying it might jeopardize ISAFP’s ongoing investigation into Lacson’s rich dollar accounts overseas, specifically in Hong Kong, Canada and the United States.

"We must see the official report of Chan. I would like to ask Colonel Corpus to declassify Chan’s report. We can discuss it in a closed-door session. We have to compare and examine the veracity of the report," Biazon said.

He added that Lacson should also be allowed to present proof that the version of the Chan report that he got was genuine.

Biazon said after several hearings, the Senate got nowhere in its investigation of the controversy involving Lacson.

"In fact, we are farther from the truth, especially when pieces of evidence are withheld," Biazon said.

Meanwhile, Lacson admitted he was being bothered that some retired police generals including mistahs in the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) where he graduated, have joined the snowballing call for his resignation.

Although he acknowledged that it was the civil and constitutional rights of his critics and detractors to demand his resignation, he stressed that he also has a right to due process.

PMA Class 1967, of which Corpus was a member, expressed support to the move calling for Lacson’s resignation.

Former PNP chief Roberto Lastimoso said Lacson should resign or take a leave of absence "if he has a sense of delicadeza."

He said the accusations against the senator were well-represented and backed up by documentary evidence.

Lastimoso said several groups and associations have joined the call for Lacson’s resignation.

Former Defense Secretary Fortunato Abat, during a weekly forum at the Rembrandt Hotel in Quezon City, pointed out, however, that Lacson was elected by the people, hence should be allowed to refute the charges against him. — With reports from Christina Mendez, Perseus Echeminada, Freeman News Service