Richard Garcia, a dismissed Philippine Constabulary soldier, was presented by Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz as his second witness during the second day of the Senate investigation into the jueteng controversy yesterday.
Garcia linked the presidential son and several prominent government officials to jueteng operations in the country, a charge that was denied by all those he subsequently named.
Demosthenes Abraham Riva, who was presented as a witness along with Garcia, said he collected jueteng payoffs for former presidential adviser on Bicol affairs Mario Espinosa, a claim vehemently disputed by the latter.
However, Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago said the testimonies of Garcia and Riva were just "hearsay" since they did not present any direct evidence linking President Arroyo’s relatives to jueteng operators.
"There is no testimony from any witness so far in the second day of the Senate hearing that establishes a direct link between jueteng operations in any area and the First Family. And, unfortunately, the rules of court state that witnesses are not to be numbered but they are to be weighed," she said.
Santiago pointed out while the testimonies of Garcia and Wilfredo Mayor, who was presented as a witness last May 30, "indicate they have knowledge of jueteng operations," there is no evidence that "the First Family, the President, her husband, her son and her brother-in-law profited personally from these jueteng operations."
Garcia, who confessed to being an operator of another game, "high-low," in Pasay City in the 1990s, said he had reestablished jueteng connections when he was introduced by two police colonels, Mel Mabilin and Pedro Tango, to Senior Superintendent Pierre Bucsit, who was then the regional intelligence officer of Bicol police director Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Tor.
Mabilin and Tango worked under National Bureau of Investigation Director Reynaldo Wycoco when he was then chief of the National Capital Region Police Office. Tango is currently assigned as deputy chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Criminal Investigation and Detection Group.
When The STAR reached him for comment, Bucsit said he would be willing to face the Senate inquiry this Thursday to "clear my name." He was relieved of his post as intelligence officer in January and is currently on floating status at the Central Luzon regional headquarters support services unit while he undergoes a course for senior investigation officers.
Bucsit had been on floating status when Chief Superintendent Rowland Albano was appointed as regional commander. Albano was removed from his post a few months ago at the height of the jueteng controversy.
Garcia quoted Bucsit as referring to the president’s eldest son as the "Lion King," a code name that suggested the young congressman was apparently receiving a "lion’s share" of the jueteng payoffs.
Garcia also tagged Gener David, also known as "Boy Tangkad," and Senior Superintendent Pat Hernandez as collectors for the PNP headquarters.
Responding to questions from Sen. Jamby Madrigal, Garcia linked former Bicol governor and now Rep. Luis Villafuerte and his sons incumbent Camarines Sur Gov. Luis "Bong" Villafuerte and Elrey Villafuerte to jueteng.
An anonymous sender had faxed an alleged list of recipients of jueteng payoffs to Madrigal’s office. This list pointed to David and Hernandez as collectors of P19.6 million in jueteng payoffs each month, Madrigal said.
Riva, on the other hand, said Espinosa initially received P20,000 but this was increased to P30,000 a month during a meeting held at the house of the mayor of Labo, Camarines Norte. Riva said they dealt with Bong Villafuerte in Camarines Sur and Leony Lim in Sorsogon.
Riva said he collected the money for Espinosa every 8th, 16th and 30th each month and quoted the latter as saying, "Ako ang binigyan ng blessing ng Unang Ginoo sa Bicol (I was the one given the blessing by the First Gentleman over Bicol)," referring to First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo.
Riva said he dared not go against someone who had the blessings of the First Gentleman and came out in the open only after hearing of Cruz’s anti-jueteng crusade.
Cruz stood by the credibility of his witnesses, though he conceded that they had not yet provided "direct evidence" linking the First Family to jueteng operators.
"Indirect pa lang so far. It has never been pinpointed (that there is) personal handing of money to the two members of the First Family," he said.
Cruz said he had at least six more witnesses to present before the Senate, provided they do not back out due to fear for their lives.
Garcia said he had been tasked to dig into jueteng operations in the Bicol Region, which he described as "already existing" when Tor and his men were assigned to the area. After eight months as police regional director, Tor was relieved of his post, allegedly on the orders of Bong Villafuerte.
In a bid to prove Rep. Arroyo’s links with former transportation assistant secretary Rene Maglanque, another alleged jueteng bagman named by Mayor, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada presented during the hearing evidence that a new house is being constructed for the congressman inside La Vista Subdivision in Quezon City, adjacent to Mrs. Arroyo’s house. Maglanque is allegedly supervising its construction.
Estrada said that, upon checking with the Quezon City assessor’s office, the 1,000-square meter lot is registered under the name of presidential daughter Lourdes Evangeline Arroyo.
Another alleged bagman named by Mayor, former Minalin, Pampanga vice mayor Arturo Naguit, repeatedly denied Mayor’s allegations.
Garcia alleged that he met Colonel Rene Gumban, who was the intelligence officer during the time of then Bicol regional police director Chief Superintendent Restituto Mosqueda.
Garcia alleged that Sandra Cam continues to collect jueteng payoffs from the Bicol area with "tasking from Malacañang." Quoting Gumban, he said "Pidal," referring to Negros Rep. Ignacio Arroyo, had installed Cam to do the collecting.
Tor, who now heads the PNP Directorate for Research, denied knowing Garcia or having had anything to do with jueteng when he was Bicol regional police director.
Rongavilla said he "does not recall having met" Garcia and stressed he had "nothing to do with jueteng."
In his testimony before the Senate, Garcia said when police officials refused to allow jueteng within their areas of jurisdiction, governors would work to have them removed from their posts.
As for Interior Undersecretary Wencelito Andanar, mentioned by Garcia as another recipient of jueteng payoffs, he denied knowing the witness.
"I have never received any money from jueteng. I have never engaged in any jueteng activity nor do I intend to do so. I am a faithful follower of Islam. To engage in any form of gambling or receive protection money from gambling is against my religion," he said.
The elder Villafuerte, for his part, denied having met Garcia and pointed out that during his three terms as Camarines Sur governor, "I’ve never been accused of involvement in jueteng."
"It’s only now that I was implicated and that’s because last Friday, I discredited Boy Mayor, whose handlers are getting back at me," he said.
Villafuerte said he and his sons are ready to appear before the Senate.
Wycoco denied Garcia’s allegations that he received P800,000 in weekly protection money when he was still NCRPO chief. He argued that if he was benefiting from jueteng, then his "good friend" Sen. Panfilo Lacson should also be a beneficiary because he headed the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force and conducted operations against illegal gambling and kidnapping.
A self-confessed jueteng fixer from Albay, Rizaldo Serilla, identified Lacson as the senator who allegedly paid P5 million for Mayor to testify that Rep. Arroyo received jueteng money. However, Serilla said he did not see the money actually change hands.
Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis Singson claimed continuing attempts to link him to jueteng "are part of a demolition job on me in connection with the plunder trial" of deposed President Joseph Estrada.
"Those who attended the hearing at the Senate... no doubt saw how Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, one of the biggest recipients of jueteng payola during his father’s presidency, tried very hard to link me to jueteng. They also saw how Garcia could only answer the senator’s question by repeating the old story about my ‘reported’ involvement. I had previously admitted having been used by (the elder) Estrada in his jueteng operations," he said.
Singson said those behind the efforts to link him to jueteng "merely want to destroy my credibility as a principal witness for the prosecution in the Estrada plunder trial." — With Cecille Suerte Felipe, Jess Diaz, Evelyn Macairan