Mikey files P5-M libel suit vs jueteng witness

President Arroyo’s eldest son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, filed libel charges yesterday against self-confessed bagwoman Sandra Cam for alleging that he took bribes from jueteng operators. He is seeking at least P5 million in damages.

Nine Pampanga mayors and about 50 sympathizers greeted Arroyo as he arrived at the courthouse at Pampanga’s provincial capitol in San Fernando City to lodge his complaint at around 11 a.m.

Cam told a Senate inquiry last Wednesday that she delivered half a million pesos in cash to Arroyo sometime last December at the session hall of the House of Representatives.

In a statement issued by his office to the media, Arroyo said Cam’s accusations caused him "mental anguish, fright, serious anxiety, besmirched reputation, wounded feelings, moral shock and social humiliation."

"The negative effects it caused me and my reputation are unimaginable especially considering that I am a public official. As a consequence I am entitled to recover from Cam moral damages," Arroyo said in the statement.

Supporters, mostly from the towns of Lubao and Guagua, carried placards expressing support. A streamer hung outside the courthouse read: "We love and support Cong. Mikey Arroyo."

"It’s good to be home," Arroyo said as supporters crowded around him in the office of assistant provincial prosecutor Bienvenido Bacani.

Arroyo’s lawyer, Grace Maduramente, said although Cam has immunity from suit as a Senate witness, she may be charged because she made the same accusation in a television interview — which Maduramente argued was not covered under immunity — a day before her appearance at the inquiry.

"The declarations and accusations of Sandra Cam (are) libelous as it imputes upon me the crime of receiving jueteng payola which I did not commit, broadcasted (sic) over nationwide television with no other motive but to dishonor and discredit me publicly," his eight-page complaint read.

He demanded P5 million in moral damages "in order to dissuade other people similarly-minded from these wrongdoings and as an example for public good."

Arroyo pointed out two "basic things" that he said contradicted Cam’s allegations.

"First and foremost, it is standard operating procedure of the security in the lower House that when a visitor goes there, he or she has to log in his or her name, especially when they are bringing a package in the spirit of safety and security. When we checked the logbook for the whole month of December, there was no Sandra Cam there," Arroyo said during a press conference.

"Secondly, she claims that she gave me the package right in the session hall. She supposedly went there in the midst of my discussion with the other congressmen and said (to me), ‘Can I talk to you for a while?’ That is impossible."

Arroyo stressed that "nobody is allowed in the session hall area if you’re not a congressman."

"Not even if you’re a mayor, a governor, or even family member. There’s a cordon there. You have to go to the page, especially if you’re carrying a package," he explained. "I hope that our countrymen will notice these two things that I have pointed out."

Arroyo said he filed the case in Pampanga "because this is where I am from. These are the people who have elected me to public office. That’s why even above my obligation to my family, I feel this obligation to clear my name in front of the people of Pampanga."

"In the end, I am confident that the Senate proceedings will clear my name. I am very confident of that," he said.

Aside from Arroyo, Cam also told the Senate inquiry that she had delivered P400,000 in bribe money to the President’s brother-in-law, Negros Occidental Rep. Ignacio "Iggy" Arroyo, on the same day, at his office at the legislature.

Iggy Arroyo also plans to file a libel suit against Cam.

House sergeant-at-arms Bayani Fabic disputed Cam’s claim, saying it was unlikely that she could have entered the House unchallenged because security had been tight due to the threat of terrorism.

‘Irresponsible’

Meanwhile, Camarines Sur Gov. Raymond Villafuerte yesterday denounced as "irresponsible" allegations that he and his family ran a jueteng protection racket.

He also denied accusations made by self-confessed bagman Richard Garcia at the Senate inquiry that the Villafuertes controlled the appointment of police officials in the province.

"Those who are familiar with the process of assigning police officials to local government units know that local chief executives only get to signify their preference from a list but the assignments are decided at (the Philippine National Police) headquarters. Under the law, local chief executives do not even have direct supervision and control over the police in their locality, even the power to hire and fire," Villafuerte said in a statement.

Garcia had told the Senate inquiry that Villafuerte, his brother Bong and their father Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte, were involved in illegal gambling.

"These characters find it so easy to accuse people of involvement in illegal gambling activities. However, proving their accusations by presenting hard evidence that would stand in a court of law is another matter, and nobody seems to be in a hurry to file formal charges," Villafuerte said.