Barbers defers report vs Lacson

Sen. Robert Barbers deferred yesterday his sponsorship of three committee reports recommending the filing of criminal charges before the Office of the Ombudsman against Sen. Panfilo Lacson and several other police officials over their alleged involvement in the kidnapping of Chinese nationals in the country.

Citing the absence of Lacson, Barbers, chairman of the Senate committee on illegal drugs, said he wants to submit the 13-page report to the plenary after Lacson has returned from the United States.

The report was the work of the Senate committee on public order and illegal drugs that Barbers heads, Sen. Ramon Magsaysay’s national defense and security committee and Sen. Joker Arroyo’s Blue Ribbon Committee.

"We have been unnecessarily bombarded with attacks that we are coddling our kind. That is why I want to sponsor this committee report to finally end these attacks," Barbers said.

There was a quorum in yesterday’s morning session with the attendance of Senate President Franklin Drilon, Senators Barbers, Arroyo, Magsaysay, Francis Pangilinan, Gregorio Honasan, Loi Ejercito, John Osmeña, Sergio Osmeña III and Senate President Pro Tempore Juan Flavier.

The joint report found Lacson liable for "neglect of duty under the doctrine of command responsibility," being then the chief of the defunct Presidential Anti-Crime Commission (PACC), Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) and as chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The committee report said that there is enough evidence to file the charges against Chief Superintendent Reynaldo Acop, Senior Superintendent Francisco Villaroman and the late Superintendent John Campos in connection with the alleged kidnapping activities of the PNP Narcotics Group in Central Luzon.

The three committees also recommended the continuation of the investigation of Acop, Villaroman and Campos for the kidnapping of Chong Hiu Ming, Wong Kam Chong, spouses Zeng Jia Xuan and Hong Zen Qiao, Zeng Kang Fang and James Ong.