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| Senators Leila de Lima and Dick Gordon/photo courtesy of ABS-CBN |
Detained opposition Senator
Leila De Lima still remembers the two witnesses in her drug trafficking case to
the Senate hearing on the alleged anomalies inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP)
last month as ordered by Senator Richard Gordon.
De Lima on Saturday commended her fellow senators for being insightful about the two invited Bureau
of Correction (BuCor) officials Benilda Bansil and Veronica Buño and charging
them with contempt.
The two BuCor officials Bansil and Buño were charged with contempt for
allegedly lying about their supposed involvement in the controversy over the
Good Conduct Time Allowance Law.
"Good to know that the Senate,
acting firmly has cited for contempt the likes of BuCor officials Benilda
Bansil and Veronica Buño for lying in the proceedings before the Justice and
Human Rights Committee, jointly with other Committees," De Lima said in a
statement.
The detained senator urged her fellow lawmakers to be
careful with the testimonies from these kinds of witnesses.
De Lima said former Bureau of Corrections officer-in-charge Rafael Ragos and National Bureau of Investigation agent Jovencio Ablen Jr.
should have been cited in contempt as well because they lied in one of the previous
hearings.
“Senate must always
exercise extra caution in accepting and presenting so-called resource persons
like Bansil, Buño, Ragos, and Ablen who are themselves involved in anomalies and
are, quite plainly, “planted” witnesses to suit some sinister motives,” she
said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Ragos and Ablen, Jr. repeated
their testimonies at the Senate hearing on alleged anomalies inside the BuCor that
they delivered money to De Lima, when she was still the Justice Secretary.
De Lima denied the allegation that she is involved in the
illegal drug trade.
However, De Lima said senators should invite witnesses with
unquestionable character instead of individuals like Ragos and Ablen but she did
not specifically mention Senator Gordon for doing such.
“Ang dapat kasing
tinatanong tungkol sa mga tunay na nangyayari sa BuCor/NBP ay yung mga
matitinong opisyal at kawani sa BuCor, yung mga hindi sangkot sa anomalya at
hindi magpapa-pressure na magsinungaling,” De Lima said.
“I don’t know why
certain colleagues of mine are still dealing with, and listening to Ragos,
providing him further platform to spout lies and appear “heroic”. Are they too
naïve to be deluded by such a character and/or his handler/s?” she added.
Senator Richard "Dick" Gordon is the chairman of the Senate Blue
Ribbon and Justice committees which are jointly holding a hearing on the
alleged irregularities inside NBP.
Source: Politiko
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