Lozada absent from NBN hearing

MANILA, Philippines - Star witness Rodolfo Noel “Jun” Lozada Jr., whistleblower in the National Broadband Network (NBN) deal anomaly, was reportedly sick and failed to appear before yesterday at the Sandiganbayan hearing on the graft charges filed against former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and several others.

The anti-graft court’s Fourth Division stopped the proceedings and reset the next hearing on Jan. 30 next year due to the absence of Lozada, who had fever and cold.

Lozada is one the prosecution witnesses in the graft charges filed against the accused in relation to the Arroyo’s alleged abuse of power to push for the approval of the $329-million contract of the government with the Chinese firm ZTE Corp. for the NBN project that was signed in 2007.

The project was eventually canceled due to public outcry after the anomaly was exposed to the public.

Lozada was supposed to testify after Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teddy Casiño, one of the complainants who filed the charges against Mrs. Arroyo, her husband Jose Miguel Arroyo, former Commission on Elections chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr., and former transportation secretary Leandro Mendoza for their alleged involvement in the NBN deal controversy.

Casiño had testified at the Sandiganbayan hearing last Wednesday.