Ang Dalawang Mukha ng Sining

Privilege speech by Sen. Panfilo Lacson

Lacson2 Erap
In Greek drama, masks were useful devices that allow the actor to play several different characters.

In the Philippine political drama, nothing much differs.

Mr. President, distinguished colleagues. Today, I rise on a matter of
personal and collective privilege.

The great American writer Elbert Green Hubbard once wrote:

If you work for a man, in heaven’s name work for him…. If you must
vilify, condemn, and eternally disparage, resign your position, and
when you are OUTSIDE, DAMN TO YOUR HEART’S CONTENT, but as long as you are part of the institution do not condemn it. If you do that, you are loosening the tendrils that are holding you to that institution, and at the first high wind that comes along, you will be uprooted and blown away, and will probably never know the reason why.

I hope you will understand why it has taken me this long to unburden
myself of the truth I carry.

Having once been a professional soldier trained in the tradition and
practice of institutional and even personal loyalty, only the higher
interest of nation and people, and the highest call of conscience,
impel me to speak out.

Mr. President, you, more than any of us in this hall, understand what I mean.

When you went through the gut-wrenching crucible of mutiny against
your commander-in-chief on February 22, 1986, you had to choose
between loyalty to person against loyalty to the higher interest of
nation and people.

Jose Ejercito, or Joseph Estrada, also known as Jose Velarde, former
president of the Republic of the Philippines and the first and only
head of state of this country to be impeached by Congress was elected
in 1998 with the highest number of votes cast by the Filipino people
ever.

He also won by the biggest margin ever, over his closest opponent,
Jose de Venecia Jr.

His campaign slogan –Erap para sa Mahirap – was a masterpiece, almost a stroke of genius.

Before he ran for the presidency, I worked with him closely as head of
an anti-crime task force of the defunct Presidential Anti-Crime
Commission formed by then President Fidel Valdez Ramos to combat the
kidnapping scourge that was gripping the country.

Foreign investors were avoiding us, while local businessmen,
especially the ethnic Chinese, were transferring elsewhere.

It was one big security and even economic threat that faced the newly
elected president in 1992.

I joined then Vice President Estrada on August 4, 1992, after a
short-lived stint as provincial director of Laguna in the Southern
Tagalog region.

I gladly accepted the offer to join PACC since I was not happy anyway
with my Laguna assignment.

I was consistently at loggerheads with most of the local elective
officials when I waged a no-nonsense, uncompromising battle against
the illegal numbers game, jueteng, in that jurisdiction.

Needless to say, those officials who were on the take from jueteng
operators hated my guts and wanted me out of the province at first
opportunity.

At the PACC, and it is a matter of public record, we scored high in
our anti-crime efforts. In less than a year, we brought down an
alarmingly high incidence of kidnap-for-ransom cases to zero.

Literally, zero.

This was highlighted by the neutralization of the dreaded Red Scorpion
Group on February 17, 1993.

Modesty aside, but without mental reservation, I can dare say our
performance helped chart Mr. Estrada’s road to the presidency.

More than a couple of years before the May 1998 presidential
elections, he was virtually a president-in-waiting.

Mr. Estrada impressed me with the way he handled his subordinates. He
personally took care of our needs, always mindful of our safety and
security.

He also managed to personally thank and commend all the operatives for a good day’s work, even giving incentives after big accomplishments

It was his personal recommendation to then President Ramos that earned me my first star rank in 1994, way ahead of my peers and even senior officers in the Philippine National Police.

During our private conversations, he would tell me:

“Alam mo Ping, kung matitigil lang ang katiwalian sa ating bansa,
siguradong maiaangat natin mula sa kahirapan ang karamihan ng ating
mga kababayan. Napakalaki kasi ang nawawala sa budget dahil sa
‘corruption’, kaya hindi tayo makaahon sa hirap.”

Having been born to poor parents myself, he struck me as the man our
country needed to lead our people.

Needless to say, I was impressed.

I would tell my men and as many people I could reach, “Kung mahal
natin ang ating bansa, si Erap ang dapat nating maging susunod na
presidente at wala nang iba.”

I put those words into action during the presidential campaign in 1998.

Under pain of being accused of electioneering, I mustered all the men
I had worked with in the Philippine National Police and the Armed
Forces of the Philippines to mount an organized strategic effort to
thwart election fraud as that could be the only way to prevent Mr.
Estrada’s victory in the 1998 presidential election.

My men and I went around the whole country – Luzon, Visayas and
Mindanao, talked to as many field commanders and chiefs of police, so
that they would not allow themselves to be used as instruments to
cheat Mr Estrada out of sure victory.

In one of our visits in Mindanao, I met with then Southcom Chief Lt.
Gen. Joselin Nazareno.

I brought him to Vice President Estrada to make his personal
commitment to guard the votes in Mindanao and made Mr Estrada promise to consider him as the next AFP Chief of Staff when he becomes president.

He did not just promise to consider. He committed the post to Gen. Nazareno.

So Erap became president, all right.

After his victory in May 1998, he started making announcements for
possible appointments to key positions in his government.

One not-so-fine afternoon, he summoned me to his Polk St. Greenhills
residence and asked if he could appoint another ranking general as AFP
Chief of Staff, instead of Gen. Nazareno.

I told him, that was his prerogative as incoming commander-in-chief,
but firmly reminded him that a promise was made to Gen. Nazareno.

His sudden amnesia got me to start thinking, “something could be wrong with the character of this man.”

This thought came again sometime in early June of 1998.

He called me to talk about what I thought would be my possible
appointment as Chief, PNP.

Instead, he expressed his thoughts on jueteng and how he intended to
deal with it during his presidency.

He said: “Ping, iniisip ko, pagbigyan na lang natin itong jueteng.
Alam mo, ang mga governors at mayors, lalo na ‘yung mga tumulong sa
akin sa eleksyon, wala sila ng katulad sa President’s social fund na
galing sa Pagcor. Marami silang gastusin at sa jueteng lang nila
pwedeng kunin ang pera.”

Shocked and surprised, I retorted, “Sir, ilegal ‘yan. Saka presidente
na kayo. Dapat huwag na kayong makialam sa jueteng. Larong lupa pati
iyan. Sasabog kayo diyan at masisira tayo pareho.

Visibly dismayed and irritated, he said, “Sige, saka na lang tayo mag-usap.”

He walked me to the main door of his house and used another tack:
“Saka, Ping, ‘yung mga tao natin dati sa task force, gusto ko rin
silang bigyan ng monthly allowance.”

To which I quickly replied: “Sir, ang mga tao natin, kami lahat,
mababaw lang ang kaligayahan namin. Kahit additional subsistence
allowance lang, happy na kami.”

Hiding his irritation, he gave me a quick and curt goodbye.

Finally on November 16, 1999, I was appointed Chief, PNP. But only
after persistent second thoughts from the appointing authority.

On November 15 of the same year, I received a call from his cohort,
Mr. Jaime Dichavez, who was, at that time, with Mr. Estrada in
Tagaytay Highlands in Cavite.

Mr. Dichavez told me I was to be informed of my appointment as Chief, PNP.

It did not turn out to be that simple.

In the living room of the Tagaytay resthouse, he told me very
seriously: “Ping, dapat pagbigyan natin ang operation ng jueteng.
Maraming umaasa diyan.”

“Eto na naman kami,” I said to myself.

By that time, I had realized jueteng had always been the deal breaker
in getting my impending appointment and must be the reason why I was not appointed in June of 1998.

Maintaining my immovable position that I cannot, as we must not,
tolerate anything that is illegal, he asked, “Sino ba ang mas senior
sa inyo ni Wycoco?” (referring to the late NBI director, Reynaldo
Wycoco), to which I answered, “Kung seniority sir sa PMA (Philippine
Military Academy), siya, dahil una siyang nag-graduate. Pero ngayon,
pareho lang kaming 2-star general, sir.”

He did not appoint me right there, instead instructed me to follow his
convoy back to Malacañang in Metro Manila.

It was in Malacañang, that same evening, that he finally informed me
of my appointment to the position, but not without his “huling hirit
sa jueteng.”

It was also during that conversation when I told him I was aware of
the monthly P5 Million “S.O.P.” being given by Gov. Chavit Singson to
the Chief, PNP as part of an organized payola, and that I was waiving
it, therefore would not accept it.

Three or four months after my assumption of office, I learned that Mr.
Estrada asked Gov. Singson to remit to him retroactively the monies
intended for the Chief, PNP.

He told Gov. Singson: “Gov, baka akala mo, hindi ko alam na hindi
kinukuha ng bagong Chief,PNP ang para sa kanya. Ibigay mo rin sa akin
‘yan.”

After all the internal reforms that I instituted in the PNP were in
place, including my “no-take policy, anti-kotong campaign, 34-inch
maximum waistline, strong anti-crime and anti-drugs campaign, proper
allocation and downloading of funds, and logistics to front-line
units, I started training my guns on the illegal numbers game –
jueteng.

It was a no-nonsense, no-matter-who-gets-hurt kind of a campaign.

I thought if I was hard on lowly policemen who stopped mulcting P100
or P200 from vegetable dealers and hapless taxi cab and jeepney
drivers out of deference to my no-take policy, I should be as hard, if
not harder, against my regional and provincial directors who were
raking in millions of pesos from gambling operators.

This was when my life started to become miserable.

The general public, even most of my distinguished colleagues in this
hall, may not be aware of this, but it was common knowledge in
Malacañang as well as in Camp Crame at that time, that for the most
part of the second half of the year 2000, I was not welcome in the
palace due to my differences with then President Estrada over the
issue of jueteng.

Mr. Estrada had unofficially declared me persona non grata in the
palace grounds.

I was practically in the doghouse for an unusually extended period of
time. Mr. Estrada would not talk to me.

He was dealing directly with my subordinate officers, both at the
PAOCTF and the PNP, which I both headed in concurrent capacity.

I could not even report to him about major incidents like the bombings
in Mindanao because he was no longer answering my calls, which he used to do, and in earnest.

“Anak ng jueteng na buhay ito!” I would tell my close friends.

Jueteng became a sore point between me and Mr. Estrada. I made it
clear that I would stick to my “no-take policy” and I continued to
issue stern warnings to my regional and provincial directors that if
they tolerate jueteng operations in their areas of responsibility,
they would be removed and subjected to harsh disciplinary action.

At least one regional director who had direct and strong connections
with Mr Estrada was defiant.

When I confronted him, he said, “Napagalitan ako ni presidente nang
simulan ko ang kampanya laban sa jueteng dito. Sino ba ang susundin
ko, Chief, PNP o ang Commander-in-Chief?”

I was successful in instituting reforms in the PNP because Mr. Estrada
gave me full authority which I asked in the first place when I got
appointed to the post.

But because of jueteng, Mr Estrada, issued a written memorandum to
then Secretary of Interior and Local Government Alfredo Lim,
effectively taking away from me the authority to appoint and remove
police officials down to provincial director level.

“Hindi nga talaga mahina ang ulo ng presidenteng ito,” I told myself.
By removing that authority, I could no longer discipline my officers,
I would fail in my anti-gambling operations and worse, I would
definitely fail in my mission.

Resigning my position crossed my mind then. I spent many sleepless
nights agonizing over my situation.

In one of our Cluster E Cabinet meetings held in the office of the
DFA, then AFP Chief of Staff Gen Angelo Reyes took pity on me and gave
his advice, “Pare, Commander-in-Chief natin ‘yan. Pagbigyan mo na muna ngayon at saka ninyo na lang pag-usapan ang problema ninyo ni
Presidente.”

I answered him, “Sir, question de prinsipyo ito. Ako ang nasa tama sa
labang ito. Tanggalin na lang n’ya ako, pero hindi ako bibigay dito.”

I found out later that indeed Mr. Estrada had started gathering legal
basis to justify my relief.

On hindsight, people close to Mr. Estrada and this representation
would say as an afterthought – EDSA 2 could not have happened had Mr Estrada listened to General Lacson’s consistent advice on jueteng.
Simple.

But on the other hand, EDSA 2 would not have happened if I went along with Mr. Estrada and Gov. Singson and altogether tolerated jueteng operations.

Why?

Bingo 2-Ball would not have been conceived to legalize jueteng.

We all know that it was during its implementation that there was a
misunderstanding and falling out between Mr. Estrada and Chavit
Singson.

Mr. Estrada realized that I would not waver on my stand against
jueteng and thought that by legalizing it, I would not have any more
reason to conduct raids and operations.

Jueteng is just one illustrative insight into the character of Mr.
Estrada as a government official, and as President of the country.
There were other sinister behavioral patterns that must be told to the
Filipino people.

Sa likod ng isang maka-mahirap na Joseph Estrada na mahal na mahal ng masa, ay maraming transaksyon na may kasamang pang-aabuso, gamit ang kapangyarihang kaagapay ng pagiging pangulo ng bansa, upang magkamal ng maraming salapi para sa sariling kapakanan.

In August 1998, in the early part of Mr. Estrada’s abbreviated
presidency, Mr. Alfonso Yuchengco was pressured to sign conveyance of his 7.75% PTIC (Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corporation) holdings, equivalent to 18,720 shares to Metro Pacific, represented by Manuel V. Pangilinan.

These PTIC holdings correspond to 2,017,650 PLDT common shares.

Mr. Yuchengco, I also learned later, was pressed to sign a waiver of
his right of first refusal over the PTIC shares of the Cojuangco-Meer
group.

It was only after the passage of many years that I was to learn that
Mr. Estrada, barely two months in office then, used the PNP to harass
Mr. Yuchengco’s son, Tito, with threat of arrest on some trumped-up
drug charges to force his father, Mr. Yuchengco to sell.

This harassment of the young man was accomplished through deliberate and obvious physical surveillance.

“Napag-alaman ko na matagal tagal ding may kimkim na galit daw sa akin ang pamilyang Yuchengco sa dahilang ang pagkaalam nila ay sa akin iniutos ni Mr Estrada ang panggigipit sa kanila upang mapwersang
magbenta ng kanilang pag-aaring shares of stocks ng PLDT.

Sa inyo, Ginoong Pangulo ng Senado, mga pinagpipitaganan kong
kasamahan at sampu ng pamilya Yuchengco — wala po akong kamalay-malay sa pangyayaring iyan.

At kung halimbawa mang sa akin iniutos ni Mr Estrada ang gawaing iyon, ay siguradong hindi ko po susundin.”

The bigger and more important question remains – “What was the deal in pesos and centavos between Mr Estrada and Mr Pangilinan, if any?”

Or, should we rather ask, “How much was involved?”

Sa larangan naman ng smuggling sa Customs at sa iba pang lugar ay
hindi rin masusukat ang kakayahan ni Mr. Estrada.

When Mr. Estrada transferred the mission of going after smugglers from
the late Lt Gen. Jose Calimlim’s unit in PSG to the PAOCTF, he gave me
the mandate to go hammer and tongs against smugglers.

Yet one morning, I received a call from Mr. Estrada. “May mga tao ka
raw na nangha-harass sa Customs,” he said with a low tone.

After checking with my officers, I replied, “Wala sila sir sa loob ng
Customs zone kaya imposibleng makapang-harass sila doon. Nandun sila
sa labas, malapit sa Manila Hotel at may inaabangan na ilulusot na
shipments ng dressed chicken parts from China and the US.”

He bellowed, “Basta i-pull out mo!”

A few days later in a light conversation on the topic of smuggling,
inside his office in Malacañang, I told Mr. Estrada, “Alam mo sir,
dalawampung 40-foot containers sana ng dressed chickens ang nahuli
natin kung hindi mo iniutos i-pull out ang mga tao natin.”

With a mocking voice, he said, “Sana hindi kayo nag-pull out.”

Akala ko, nang bigyan ako ng kautusang lipulin ang mga smugglers sa
pier, totoong-totoo at seryoso. Ako namang si gago, trabaho lang ng
trabaho. ‘Yun pala, moro-moro.

May dalawang mukha nga ba ang sining? O, sa likod ng putting tabing ay ibang itsura ng mukha ang nakatago?

Pagkatapos ng manok na galing sa Tsina at Amerika, dumako naman tayo
sa bigas na tanim ng Vietcong.

Sometime in August 2000, when Mr. Estrada was hardly talking to me, on account of my hard-headedness on the issue of jueteng, he was giving a direct order to one of my subordinate officers in PAOCTF to release a shipload of smuggled rice that was apprehended somewhere in the Cebu-Bohol area.

The PAOCTF officer was with me in Cebu during that time, and he was
relaying to me the President’s order.

I did not bother to find out anymore if the officer complied or not
with Mr. Estrada’s order.

I thought I should not interfere with a direct order coming from the
President to a subordinate officer because in doing so I felt that it
would add insult to injury upon myself.

Sadly, because we never punish smugglers, the same people who
sabotaged our economy during the Estrada regime are the same saboteurs in bed with the present dispensation.

Walang nagbago, lalo lang lumaki ang komisyon at lagayan.

In an effort to defend himself from accusations that he may have been
involved in the Dacer-Corbito double murder case, he has consistently
asserted that he never dealt with officials other than the heads of
agencies.

Yet, on so many occasions, and I have personal knowledge on this,
during his presidency, he was giving direct orders and instructions
deep into the layers of the entire government bureaucracy, the PNP and the PAOCTF included.

And those who have worked with him in Malacañang know whereof I speak.

Mr. Estrada had the temerity to issue a press statement that I was the
one who knew and in fact supervised what former police officer Cezar
Mancao had testified in court as “Operation or Oplan Delta”, allegedly
a special operations plan designed to neutralize Salvador “Bubby”
Dacer.

Mabuti pa si Mr. Estrada, alam niyang may “Oplan Delta.” Ako, sa mga
pahayagan at kamakailan ko lamang narinig at nalaman na mayroon palang “Oplan Delta.”

Sa halip na i-depensa na lang niya ang sarili niya, bakit siya
kailangang magturo ng iba?

Mr. President, distinguished colleagues, maraming bagay-bagay na sa
abot ng aking natuklasan, matapos ang aking sariling pagsasaliksik at
pag-iimbestiga hindi lamang sa usaping ito kundi pati ibang kasong
maaring kinasangkutan ni Ginoong Estrada ang nais kong ibahagi sa
kapulungang ito.

Marami din akong gustong itanong kay Mr. Estrada:

1. Sino ang inutusan mo para i-harass at gipitin ang pamilya ni Al Yuchengco?

2. Sino ang tumawag sa iyo para utusan ako na i-pull out ang mga tao
kong nakaabang na hulihin ang smuggled chicken parts?

3. Kaninong shipment ng smuggled rice ang ipina-release mo sa Cebu?

4. At higit sa lahat, anu-ano pa ang mga iniutos mo sa ating mga
dating tauhan sa PAOCTF na lingid sa aking kaalaman?

But for now and today, I will limit the subject of my privilege speech
to the issues I mentioned.

Mr. President, distinguished colleagues, with your indulgence, please
allow me to take the floor once again on Monday next week.

For former President Joseph Ejercito-Estrada, there is no corruption
if it does not involve government funds.

Therefore, following his flawed logic, it is not corruption to accept
bribes – from jueteng and some shady deals that involve using the
power and influence of the presidency.

He has not heard of ‘conflict of interest’ nor taking advantage of
one’s position to amass wealth.

He has not changed that loose definition of corruption.

In media interviews and in his conversations with friends and
associates, he maintains that he had not done anything wrong since all
his transactions while he was president did not involve government
funds.

Now he is presenting himself again to the Filipino people, for one
more chance at the presidency.

At this juncture of our history, after suffering eight years of
unmitigated corruption under the regime which succeeded the Estrada
presidency, I would be remiss in my sworn duties as an elected member
of the Senate, as a nationally elected official of the land, if I did
not unburden myself of my insights into the character of Mr. Estrada.

Marahil may mga magsasabi na sa mga binigkas ko ngayon ay hindi ako
marunong tumanaw ng utang na loob, lalo na sa pangulong siyang
naghirang sa akin.

Ngunit hindi naman din matatawaran ang naibahagi kong tulong, sampu ng aking mga tauhan, sa kanyang katanyagan nung siya ay nanunungkulang bise-presidente at bilang Chairman ng Presidential Anti-Crime Commission.

Ang mas mahalaga ay pairalin ang marapat at matuwid.

At lalong mahalaga na gawing kataas-taasang adhikain ang kapakanan at kinabukasan ng mamamayang Pilipino.

God save the Philippines from Joseph Ejercito alias Joseph Estrada.

Wait, there’s more!: Buy her a gift this Valentines! or send her flowers!

Rocking and refreshing sound of ‘Allura’

Rocking and refreshing, Allura’s debut EP is a tantalizing taste of bigger things to come. From the word , go, Allura draws you into their world of pop-tempo rock with the opening ‘Liberty with Wings’. The rest of the ride is riot punctuated by the mood inducing ‘Gamajazillion’ and finally ending with the stadium-rousing anthem of ‘Ladela’. Wake up and Smell the Seaweed will suck you into the whirlpool of youthful vibrancy, with the almost pixie-like quality of front woman Inch Chua, flanked delicately by the furious but precise guitar stabs of guitarist Aaron Wong and Mark John and supported by the explosive rhythm machine of Low Han Quan and punchy bass growl of Matthew Yap.

The EP defies any attempts to be submerged into the depths of boring rock. Uplifting and emotionally addictive, their debut outing delivers candy-sweet pop melodies and, leaving the listeners craving for more.

Conceived in early 2007, Allura is a five-piece band infusing a different variety of influences, from jazz to alternative, from experimental to indie – portrayed in the form of rock.

Allura wears the badge of youthful rock proudly on their chest, ready to shout form any tall building in the gloomy urban landscape. Full of unfettered energy and conviction, Allura always delivers with bravado without tomorrow, with singer Inch Chua as the energetic lead dancer in the rock symphony phenomena that is Allura.

Accompanied by the vicious licks and kicks of guitarist Aaron Wong and Mark John Hariman, the dueling guitars pin down all listeners in the audience with breath taking gusto. Always there to hold the soaring melodic lines down are drummer Low Han Quan and bassist Matthew Yap, holding the groove and moving the band with pulsating rhythm. Surrender your deepest reservations; get ready to heed Allura’s call.

Check out their other material:
Closure
Ladeda

Cancelled flight this weekend!

I was supposed to go back to Cebu yesterday to shoot the southern heritage trails of the province. I have already finished my research and ready to hit the road when suddenly, BOOM! Storms have started pounding the country just before the week ended.

cebu danggit

So I decided to temporarily call off my trip. the towns of Argao, Boljoon, Carcar and some other can wait for me. I just do want to go there soaking wet and with no blue skies to fill as backdrop of my photos.

No chance to get stocks of danggit and fish Tocino at the Tabo-an market. The hope of going to Olango Wildlife Sanctuary is on hold.

What is even more exciting is that right after the Cebu adventure, I will be flying out of the province and head to Caticlan. Home of the country’s most popular beach destination: Boracay! I am supposed to spend a night there, then head to Kalibo to visit an old friend then head to the Sampaguita Gardens in New Washington. Sampaguita Gardens is a resort/hotel/retirement home of the creator of the very popular Precious Moments figurine collections.

I just hope that the weather gets better so I can rebook my plane ticket before the end of this month.

You like reading this blog post? You might also be interested in BYAHILO's other adventures at Sugarloaded!

Cancelled flight this weekend!

No record of Mikey’s supplemental SALN in Ombudsman, Pampanga capitol

by VERA Files

The Office of the Ombudsman and Pampanga provincial capitol have no record of presidential son and Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo filing any supplemental Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth (SALN) for 2002 where he said he reported the assets of his wife Angela Montenegro after they married, as required by law.

Mikey’s SALN for 2003 is also not in the files of both offices.

The supplemental SALN, which Mikey and his lawyer Ruy Rondain produced last week, amends his declared 2002 assets of P5 million to P68.7 million, an increase they said was brought about by his marriage to Angela in June 2002. Mikey was then Pampanga vice governor.

“Nung kinasal siya, precisely because gusto niyang ideklara yung mga joint assets nila ng asawa niya, nag-file siya ng supplemental SALN (When he got married, precisely because he wanted to declare his and his wife’s joint assets, he filed a supplemental SALN),” Rondain told DZRH commentator Joe Taruc in the morning radio program “Damdaming Bayan.”

Marrying an “independently wealthy” woman is the latest justification Mikey has provided for the jump in his net worth, which stood at P74 million in 2004 and P99 million last year. Mikey has said his wealth enabled him to purchase real property, including a $1.32-million beachfront house in Foster City, California in 2006.

Click here (VERA Files) for the rest of the story.

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