Pardoned former President Joseph Estrada said yesterday that the monitoring camera allegedly installed by the Philippine National Police across the De La Salle University in Greenhills, San Juan where the custodians of Senate witness Rodolfo Lozada Jr., were based is an indication that the Arroyo government is “panicking and desperate.”
In a telephone interview with The STAR, Estrada said it is also a proof that the Filipinos are not safe in their own country anymore.
“It just shows that nobody is safe anymore in our country. We are really helpless in this government. I don’t know what kind of government we have now. It is being run by desperate and panicky leaders,” Estrada told The STAR.
Reports from ABS-CBN had it that the monitoring camera was directed to the main gate of De La Salle University Greenhills campus, a university managed by La Salle Brothers.
Security guards of DLSU said the camera was installed at around 4 p.m. on Thursday by four men, whose faces were covered by handkerchiefs prompting them to accost them. The four men claimed that they are from Comm Works and were tasked to install a PNP surveillance camera, ABS-CBN reported.
PNP chief Director General Avelino Razon Jr., denied ordering the installation of the monitoring camera.
Police Inspector Ed Catacas, of the Mandaluyong Police, said Mandaluyong PNP was not involved.
“As far as Mandaluyong is concerned, we are not involved. We did not receive any instruction to put up the camera,” Catacas said.
It can be recalled that on Thursday last week, Lozada exposed all that he knows about the anomalies in the National Broadband Network (NBN) deal entered into by the government with the China-based ZTE firm at the DLSU on Thursday last week.