Lozada's nuns offer protection for Gadian

MANILA, Philippines – A group of nuns have offered Lt. Senior Grade Mary Nancy Gadian, the Navy offi-cer who exposed the alleged misuse of the P46-million fund for RP-US Balikatan military exercises in 2007, the same protection they have given national broadband network deal scandal whistleblower Rodolfo Lozada Jr.

In a two-page manifestation filed yesterday with the Supreme Court, the Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines (AMRSP) has offered their facilities at St. Teresa of Avila building in New Manila, Quezon City as a sanctuary for Gadian in connection with the writ of amparo issued by the SC to the Navy officer.

“The undersigned respectfully manifests that our organization is willing to provide sanctuary to Lt. S/G Mary Nancy Gadian, who was granted a writ of amparo yesterday, 21 May 2009. Should the Honorable Court order the same, the aggrieved party Lt. S/G Mary Nancy Gadian may seek refuge in the Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines premises,” the group said.

Last May 21, the Court has granted a petition seeking protection for Gadian filed by her elder sister Nedina Diamante.

In a two-page writ of amparo authorized by Chief Justice Reynato Puno, the SC ordered the Court of Appeals to hear the petition seeking issuance of temporary restraining order directing four Armed Forces and Navy officials and a former official “to refrain from issuing or carrying out any threat to the life, liberty and security” of her sister.

The Court has set the hearing at 10 a.m. on May 28, giving the appellate court only 10 days to issue a ruling on the petition after its submission for decision.

The SC also ordered respondents – Armed Forces chief of staff Lt. Gen. Victor Ibrado, Navy flag officer-in-command Vice Admiral Ferdinand Golez, Western Mindanao Command chief of staff Col. Joel Ibanez, management and finance officer Lt. Col. Antonio Dacanay, and former commander Ret. Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo – to submit verified return of writ and their comment on the petition before the hearing.

The writ was issued two days after the petition was filed last Tuesday when the Court was in recess for the magistrates’ decision writing.

The Court is set to resume regular sessions on June 1 for the divisions and June 2 for the whole of the Court.

Assisted by lawyer Harry Roque and his associates, Diamante asked the Court to protect her sister from threats from military officials she had implicated in the fund scam expose.

“There is a very serious threat to the life, liberty, and security of petitioner’s sister. The right to life, liberty and security of petitioner’s sister is violated or threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of public officials or private individuals that are under the control or supervision of respondents,” the eight-page petition stated.

“Ostensibly the threats to petitioner’s sister are meant to cow, intimidate, silence and prevent her from informing the public about the alleged corruption in the Balikatan exercises,” it added.

Diamante lamented that her sister has gone into hiding precisely due to threats to her life allegedly to prevent her from disclosing what she knows about the alleged fund misuse.

She told the SC that she received a text message from her sister last May 16 saying that a “shoot-to-kill” order had been issued against the latter.