Panic button

It is somewhat disheartening how some government officials referred to by jueteng witness Wilfredo Mayor in his testimony before a Senate committee the other day have reacted or, more accurately, overreacted to the revelations involving them. Normally articulate politicians have been reduced to babbling, self-pitying, non-sequitur pandering babes in the woods.

Relax, ladies and gentlemen, it’s too early in the game to act like cornered wild boars. An outraged denial of involvement in jueteng, and a disclaimer that one knew the alleged bagmen who dared to pose as your authorized agents ought to suffice for now if, that is, such denial and disclaimer represent the unembellished truth.

A hang-dog expression, while lamenting before television cameras how brutal politics have become, does not particularly impress. The "poor, persecuted me" approach by politicians who, not too long ago, were trying to convince people that their only motive in running for public office was a burning desire to "serve the people," doesn’t sell. Who asked them to run in the first place? Today, the proverbial kitchen is hot and it’s too late to get out. The thing to do now is not to shed tears, but to start cooking!

I don’t know who advised President GMA to blame the opposition for thejueteng mess. Whoever that was ought to be hung by the thumbs because her rant rang singularly hollow. No, the jueteng issue is manifestly not an attempt by the political opposition to continue fighting the 2004 election.

Further, if the congressional investigations are causing political destabilization, which admittedly is not far-fetched, it is not necessarily because of any rightist, leftist or Erap loyalist plots. The solution to jueteng is not to overthrow government but to enforce the law. Wilfredo Mayor himself conceded that jueteng can be eradicated if all in government, starting with the President, get serious and go hammer and tongs against gambling lords and all the policemen and politicians that protect them.

Someone forgot to remind the President that Wilfredo Mayor is not a witness of Senator Ping Lacson, or that perennially plotting military cabal or anyone from Erap’s camp. He was sheltered by no less Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz who, people surmise, must have vetted him thoroughly before trotting him out to be devoured by the wolves in Congress and media. The Archbishop has affirmed that Mayor approached only him, and not the opposition.

Evidently, Wilfredo Mayor is no saint. Yes, he’s a defeated mayoralty candidate. Yes, he was probably squeezed out of the jueteng rackets in Bicol by a more powerful syndicate (allegedly speaking a non-Bicolano, Central Luzon-based dialect), not by sincere contrition for his evil acts. Yes, he may have testified to avoid criminal liability for his past acts, and boost his stock for another run at local public office. It may even be true, as his detractors allege, that he is a drug addict and an accused in several estafa cases.

Wilfredo Mayor, in other words, may be an unsavory character but he doesn’t seem to be an opposition hit man. At any rate, a concededly unsavory background is never a disqualification for witnesses in this country. As I recall, not too long ago, we had one such indubitably effective witness who declared he realized his self-incriminating evidence might land him in jail, but that he looked forward to occupying a cell beside a deposed and convicted former President. At the time, he was roundly applauded and the President was indeed deposed, albeit not yet convicted.

A distinct no-no is the pained reply of Albay Rep. Joey Salceda that, far from merely denying involvement, he would mount a "strong" legal response, including libel charges against Mayor. I’m afraid Joey is a far more convincing advocate of necessary reductions in our budgetary deficits than he is a legal strategist. Korina Sanchez correctly noted that in her and co-anchor Ted Failon’s interview of Salceda during their morning radio show, the usually glib solon seemed uncharacteristically incoherent.

It will be recalled that Mayor asked for immunity before he testified at the Senate. The request was granted under the law which allows protection for witnesses who testify on alleged violations of the anti-jueteng law. Senate President Frank Drilon clarified, however, that immunity only applies if the witness tells the truth. But since much of Mayor’s testimony was his word against that of the alleged bagmen, the predictable denials of the latter might not be legally sufficient to prove that Mayor lied.

As for a libel case against Mayor, his testimony was that the alleged bagmen claimed to represent the congressmen. Mayor even admitted he could not be sure if the bagmen really were agents of any of the politicians who supposedly received pay-offs. Mayor did not specifically link Salceda, or any of the named congressmen, policemen or local officials to the pay-offs. He never testified that those officials actually received the dirty money.

I don’t see a libel case here. All Salceda has to do is to disclaim any connection with his alleged bagman. The so-called bagmen themselves may have more of a case against Mayor, except that the immunity may a formidable legal obstacle to any such suit. The conflicting assertions of Mayor and the alleged bagmen, absent any independent evidence of who’s lying and who’s telling the truth, would by themselves not be sufficient to meet the standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.

All those implicated should just cool it and let events take their course. They should wait for more definitive testimony and resist the temptation to publicly telegraph their legal counter-punches. They should refrain from making any rash or imprudent statements which may only lock them into unsustainable positions. It may be too much to expect them not to talk, but they would be wise to remember that less talk, less mistake.