New immigration hearing set for Bolante

WASHINGTON — A new immigration hearing for former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn "Jocjoc" Bolante, charged with trying to enter the United States with a cancelled visa, will be held at his request in Chicago on Aug. 21, the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) said.

The hearing before immigration judge George Katsivalis will be by video conference and Bolante will be represented by Y. Judd Azulay of the Chicago law firm Azulay, Horn & Seiden, said Elaine Komis, a spokeswoman for the Washington-based EOIR.

"In certain cases it’s much more efficient to do a master calendar hearing by video conference rather than having to transport the alien to the immigration court," Komis said.

An immigration master calendar hearing is like an arraignment in federal judicial court. It’s a defendant’s initial meeting with a judge to discuss the charges, legal representation and any applications for relief he or she may wish to make, Komis said.

She said during the hearing Bolante will remain at the Broadview detention center near Chicago while judge Katsivalis will be at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building in the heart of the city.

There have been reports that Bolante is trying to seek asylum in the United States to avoid going back to the Philippines where he is wanted by the Senate for questioning about various misdeeds during his stint as agriculture undersecretary, including plunder and misuse of public funds.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Justice Department officials have declined to confirm or deny such reports.

But Sen. Ramon Magsaysay Jr. is taking no chances and has appealed to US authorities to deny Bolante asylum, arguing that the former agriculture official does not qualify as he is neither an enemy of the administration nor a victim of political persecution.

The Senate has called for Bolante’s arrest after he snubbed a public hearing last year over allegations that he used some P2.8 billion pesos in fertilizer funds to reward politicians who helped President Arroyo win the hotly-contested 2004 presidential election.

Bolante was arrested on arrival at Los Angeles airport from Seoul, South Korea on July 7 with an invalid tourist visa and held at the San Pedro detention center near Los Angeles.

He was transferred to Broadview after he requested a change of venue to Chicago, where he is believed to have relatives, when he appeared before immigration judge DD Sitgraves in Los Angeles for his first hearing on July 31.

"Essentially we’re starting from scratch again in the judicial process," Komis said.