Corpus on Honasan denial: He’s lying

The former chief of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP), Brig. Gen. Victor Corpus, yesterday called opposition Sen. Gregorio Honasan "a liar" in denying involvement in a supposed coup plot against President Arroyo.

Corpus also challenged Sen. Panfilo Lacson to reveal what the senator has against him.

"If there is any substance to the accusations he (Lacson) is threatening to make against me, he should quickly make them public in their entirety," Corpus said.

He said the "inaccessible" Honasan was lying through his teeth when he denied involvement in the July 27 mutiny.

The mutiny supposedly highlighted the coup plot named "Campaign Plan: Andres," where Kuya (elder brother), the supposed code name for Honasan, would be installed as the head of a 15-member junta.

"Malaking kasinungalingan iyan (That’s a big lie)," Corpus told The STAR in a telephone interview.

He pointed out the documents pertaining to "Andres" were among evidence seized by the military from the rebel officers and soldiers who staged the July 27 mutiny a the Oakwood Premier Ayala Center in Makati City.

"Honasan was included in the (plan Andres) and his name was part of the master list confiscated from the junior officers," Corpus said.

He claimed Honasan has resorted to issuing denial because the government had gathered enough evidence linking him to the mutiny.

Honasan was a former Army colonel who admitted to have been involved in three coup attempts against President Corazon Aquino in the 1980s.

Like Honasan, Corpus claimed the spokesman of the July 27 mutineers, Navy Lt. (sg) Antonio Trillanes IV, is finding it difficult to prove that their action was a spontaneous activity.

Corpus noted Trillanes made several statements but was not able to prove that the mutiny was only a one-day affair. "Honasan is lying... and so is Trillanes," Corpus said in Filipino.

Corpus said Honasan should now resurface and face the accusations squarely.

Honasan, who made himself "inaccessible" after accusations that he had a hand in the failed coup attempt, said he will rebut all allegations against him.

Corpus resigned July 30 as ISAFP chief to end what he termed "restiveness" in the AFP following the July 27 mutiny.

Corpus was among the officials accused by the mutineers of incompetence and involvement in the recent deadly bombings in Davao City to justify more military aid from the United States.

The mutineers had claimed that Corpus was in Davao City when a bomb exploded in a crowded wharf, killing 16 people in April. They said Corpus was either involved in the attack or was so incompetent he failed to detect and foil the attack.

Corpus denied the accusations but tendered his resignation to President Arroyo, saying it was best for him to step down in the interest of military unity and stability.

Being the ISAFP chief, Corpus also figured in a tussle with Lacson who was also accused of involvement in criminal activities.

Both Honasan and Lacson have expressed their intention to run in the next year’s presidential race.

Lacson reportedly threatened to make a privilege speech detailing anomalies involving Corpus who headed the agency that gathered the evidence against him.

A joint report of the Senate committees on public order and security, defense and the Blue Ribbon committee called for a deeper probe into Lacson’s alleged involvement in drug trafficking, kidnap-for-ransom and summary execution activities.

The joint report was prepared by Senators Robert Barbers, Ramon Magsaysay Jr. and Joker Arroyo.

In response to the three lawmakers’ attempt to finally vote on their report on a plenary session, Lacson threatened spell out the anomalies where Corpus was involved.

"Right now, he (Lacson) is performing a striptease exposé to gain media exposure and to deflect attention from the accusations he is facing from his own peers," Corpus replied.

Corpus challenged Lacson to bare all the goods against him and not to tie his exposé to the joint committee report.

"If he is really confident that his evidence against me is strong, I am challenging him to make his accusations outside the halls of Congress so he can be made accountable for his charges," Corpus said.

Corpus also challenged Lacson to make concrete his accusations by filing charges against him before the Ombudsman.

"It is a shame the senator has resorted to squid tactics where he should be directly addressing the serious accusations made against him, which are backed up by evidence. At the very least, he should be man enough to present his evidence against me," he said.