Gov’t execs to testify against Lozada, brod

MANILA, Philippines - The president of Philippine Forest Corp. (Philforest) and other government officials will testify against Rodolfo Lozada Jr. and his brother Jose Orlando when their trial begins next month at the Sandiganbayan.

Joining Philforest president Erwin Santos as witnesses are Office of the Ombudsman probers and representatives of the Senate and the Civil Service Commission.

Lozada will be tried for alleged offenses committed when he was president of Philforest, including his alleged involvement in the questionable grant of leasehold rights to Jose Orlando in 2007.

The prosecution intends to present at least 12 witnesses during trial proper on May 29 and 30.

The defense will present the two co-accused Lozadas and Santos as a hostile witness.

The prosecution and defense submitted their pre-trial briefs during pre-trial proceedings yesterday. 

The Office of the Ombudsman charged Lozada and his brother in August last year.

Lozada told The STAR he and his brother are ready to defend their innocence.

“If the Aquino administration wishes to actively pursue these charges by keeping the sole witness against me in their administration, then we are duty bound to defend ourselves against this administration,” he said.

Lozada and his brother were arraigned last month.

Records at the Commission on Audit (COA) show Lozada and Jose Orlando left Philforest with P495,953 and P80,000 in unliquidated cash advances in 2008.

As of Dec. 31, 2011, the amounts remain unsettled, along with other cash advances totaling P2.278 million dating as far back as 2006.

In 2011, the COA reported that 15 Philforest officials and employees had a total of P1.127 million unliquidated cash advances, including Santos in the amount of P382,027.

Thirteen former officials and employees have unsettled cash advances of more than P1.151 million, including the Lozada brothers.

State auditors said they have issued demand letters to concerned officers and employees on July 14, 2012 to settle  the unliquidated cash advances within 10 days but did not receive any response.

Philforest officials were asked to require the concerned officers and employees to immediately liquidate their cash advances or have the amounts withheld from their respective salaries.

Lozada said when he was Philforest president, he had asked COA to assign an auditor to them and had been seeking COA’s advise on decisions and board resolutions to make sure that all operations were aboveboard.