DA chief expected to face accuser Bolante today

MANILA, Philippines –  Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap is expected to confront his accuser, former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn “Jocjoc” Bolante, who is expected to attend today’s House hearing on the P728-million fertilizer scam.

Palawan Rep. Abraham Mitra, agriculture committee chairman, said yesterday he had talked to Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, who chairs the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, “who allowed Mr. Bolante to testify in our inquiry.”

“So I expect him to show up tomorrow,” Mitra said yesterday.

He added that Yap has confirmed his attendance in today’s hearing.

Yap and Bolante were “no shows” in the start of Mitra’s inquiry last Tuesday.

During Thursday’s Blue Ribbon committee investigation, the former agriculture official claimed he had no knowledge of the irregularities uncovered by the Commission on Audit in the use of the P728-million in fertilizer funds in 2004, shortly before the May presidential election.

He said the official who could have known the anomalies would be Yap, who, he added, was then undersecretary for operations in the Department of Agriculture (DA) and at the same time National Food Authority administrator.

Yap denied Bolante’s accusation, saying his former DA colleague was just resorting to “character assassination” to hide his responsibility for the scam.

He challenged Bolante to expose the real culprits behind the irregularities.

Others raring to confront the former DA undersecretary are congressmen whom he listed as “proponents” of fertilizer funds. In all, there were 105 House members on his list, 52 governors, one vice governor, and 23 town mayors.

Many of those on his list admitted receiving funds or fertilizer. Others claimed they neither got cash nor farm input.

Bolante has expressed willingness to attend the House inquiry. In a letter to Mitra last Monday, he said he has to get the permission of the Senate first since he is under the custody of senators.

House leaders did not want to write senators about Bolante since the two chambers of Congress are co-equal.

“It’s a matter of the Senate trusting the House with Bolante,” said Speaker Prospero Nograles.