Present evidence vs FG now, Cayetano urged

Congressmen-allies of First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo yesterday urged House Deputy Minority Leader Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano of Taguig-Pateros to present evidence to prove his claim that the Arroyos had "hundreds of millions of dollars" in a German bank.

Bohol Rep. Eladio Jala said that, since officials of HypoVereins Bank have issued certifications that none of the Arroyos had money in their bank in the last 10 years, Cayetano should present proof to support his allegations.

"He should present his evidence now or be prepared to face the music," said Jala, who sits on the ethics committee hearing the expulsion cases filed by the Arroyos against Cayetano.

Leyte Rep. Eduardo Veloso said that, if Cayetano cannot support his allegations, Cayetano "should be prepared to face the consequences of his irresponsibility."

Cayetano made his allegations from July to August 2006, during the impeachment proceedings against President Arroyo.

In the course of debunking claims by administration allies that the evidence the opposition had against Mrs. Arroyo was garbage, Cayetano asked: "Is a local bank account with hundreds of millions of pesos trash? What about a German bank account with hundreds of millions of dollars — not pesos — and with the account number 87-570-23030-32100-62771571?"

He said Mrs. Arroyo could resolve the lingering political crisis and bring peace to the nation by telling her House allies to allow the opening of seven boxes of evidence against her that the opposition possessed.

"Let us open those boxes and see if there is evidence or not. If there is none, you can do whatever you want with us. You can have us resign and work for free for the President. I’ll even volunteer to be her bodyguard," Cayetano said.

He also said the evidence includes "footage not only of eyewitnesses but people who actually participated and are willing to testify in the switching of election returns."

"Once the boxes are opened, all these will be revealed," he added.

Mrs. Arroyo’s allies later voted to dismiss the impeachment complaints against her without examining the complainants’ evidence.

Five months after leveling his accusations at the First Family, Cayetano opted not to present any evidence, but asked the House of Representatives to dismiss the misconduct case against him for lack of evidence.

"We believe the complainants (Arroyo family) miserably failed to present evidence (in this case)," Cayetano’s lawyer, Joel Montales, told members of the House ethics committee in a hearing presided over by its acting chairman, Baguio City Rep. Mauricio Domogan.

Montales said they are filing a demurrer to evidence — a court procedure where the defense panel defers the presentation of evidence and banks on the weakness of the prosecution’s case. However, Montales said, "we are just exercising our right (to demurrer). But we are not in any way waiving our right to present evidence."

Cayetano, a senatorial hopeful for the May elections, concurred with his lawyer: "Yes, of course, I will present evidence."

Meanwhile, administration Representatives Luis Villafuerte of Camarines Sur and Rodolfo Antonino of Nueva Ecija said that, since Cayetano made his exposé in September 2006, he has yet to produce his evidence.

"It’s been six months, but he has not presented an iota of evidence," Antonino said. "(Cayetano’s) motive is very obvious. Can he just stop evading the issue? Why are you making the motion (to await the transcript) if you are not ready for it?"

Montales said they will wait for the committee’s transcript to be finished before they can file the demurrer, but when the House stenographers assured them that the transcript could be produced right away, he said it was "too short a time" to file the demurrer.

Domogan gave Cayetano, through Montales, until noon today to file their demurrer when the committee resumes its hearing. It is set to hear the report of the three-man team sent to Munich last week led by Bohol Rep. Roberto Cajes.

Michael Victor Teczon, the lawyer of First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, his sons Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo and Diosdado Ignacio, and his brother Iloilo Rep. Ignacio Arroyo, informed the panel that the Arroyo family is "resting their case." The Arroyos want Cayetano expelled from the House for making baseless accusations. — With Delon Porcalla