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Thursday, May 26, 2005
Manila prelate says priests receive donations from jueteng lords
* Police head gives deadline on eradication of jueteng
* Bishop Cruz attends justice office probe on jueteng, provides list of jueteng lords but justice head says list is just 'second-hand info'
* Cruz says he has not proof linking President Arroyo to jueteng
MANILA Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales said Wednesday some priests accept donations from jueteng lords.
"Sadly, there are some that are accepting (donations from jueteng lords) but these priests are those whose values are not very priestly," said Rosales.
But Rosales said the priests receive the donations not for their personal use but for building chapels and churches.
Rosales said it is not right to say that the Catholic Church in the country benefits from jueteng donations since it is clear that only some priests, particularly in Pampanga, get donations from jueteng lords.
He also said in his 18 months as head of the Manila archdiocese, no one has attempted to bribe or give him jueteng payola.
"I'm only 18 months here in the Archdiocese of Manila but just the same when I was in Lipa I returned the checks sent to me as well as in Malaybalay. So far, nobody here has attempted (to bribe me) because they know my stand," Rosales said.
Meanwhile, justice officials denounced as "mere second-hand information" the list of 16 names of alleged jueteng lords provided to the Department of Justice (DOJ) by Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr., who chairs a special committee against jueteng and other illegal gambling, said the 16 alleged jueteng lords led by Rodolfo "Bong" Pineda, Charito "Charing" Magbuhos and Batangas Governor Armando Sanchez still control the operations of jueteng operations in 24 provinces in Region 4.
Emerging from a closed-door meeting of the special committee held at Gonzalez's office Wednesday, Cruz said he does not have any evidence that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo received jueteng payola.
"I would give her the benefit of the doubt. I would believe what she said because I have no proof that she also has received money from jueteng lords. It is okay. I would take that as a truth from her. I give her credibility for that," Cruz said.
Cruz also said he is also giving the First Gentleman the benefit of the doubt on allegations that he receives jueteng payola.
Cruz said he believes that the investigation on jueteng being conducted by the DOJ through the special committee is leading to something.
"I believe in the credibility of the investigation being conducted by the DOJ. Otherwise I will not be here. I believe it is worthwhile. That is from the heart," Cruz said.
"What I want is for jueteng to be out of the national picture. And out permanently. I have no agenda, no agenda, political or whatsoever. I just want this corrupt racket to leave our country. It has done too much damage already," Cruz added.
Cruz reiterated that he received a P10 million check sent by a unanimous donor who he suspects is a jueteng lord but he considers the move as a joke. "Jueteng people do not believe in checks. They deal in cash," Cruz said.
A copy of a Bank of Philippine Islands (BPI) check shown to reporters carried the name Rudolpho Hizon III with address at 838 Ruby Street, San Agustin, San Fernando, Pampanga.
Cruz said he believes that the authorities can lick jueteng in a matter of days. "Jueteng can be licked. I would like to believe that they can do it, if they will put their heart into it because jueteng is visible," Cruz said.
Vicente Aquino, executive director of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (Amlac), who also attended the meeting Wednesday, said the Amlac is checking reports that jueteng lords use unwitting Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to fund jueteng operations.
"We are looking into that to determine whether the report is accurate or not. The Amlac is taking action on this. But I cannot disclose what the Amlac is doing now because it is a financial intelligence unit and we are not supposed to telegraph our move to the public," Aquino said.
Aquino said jueteng is an unlawful activity, which is subject to anti-money laundering laws. "The job of the Amlac is to investigate the money-laundering aspect of this unlawful activity and that is what we are doing right now. That is what we are looking into. It's not a matter of belief but it is a matter of proof," Aquino said.
For his part, Secretary Gonzalez said Cruz submitted documents that listed 16 names operating jueteng in 24 provinces in the country.
"The list includes operators, financiers and there are governors and there are also officials who were mentioned in newspaper reports. But I have other names, which were not in the list. These are the leads we have," Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez said he asked Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Angelo Reyes to trace the people named by Cruz in the list.
"We will convince some important witnesses who are willing to come out at this time. Cruz admits that it stopped. But the point here is even if it stopped, if they were involved before, they would still be liable for the crime," Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez said a distribution group of jueteng lords gets at least P19 million a month.
Meanwhile, National Police Chief Arturo Lomibao gave all city and municipal and provincial police chiefs in Southern Tagalog and Bicol regions until Thursday to clear their areas of jueteng and if they fail to do so, they will be relieved from their respective posts.
In a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City, Lomibao said jueteng exists in 20 towns in Bicol region and in seven towns in Southern Tagalog region.
The towns include San Nicolas, Bauan, Padre Garcia and Taal in Batangas; San Pablo City in Laguna; two in Quezon province; four in Albay, three in Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte; one in Masbate and seven in Sorsogon.
Lomibao warned the police chiefs of the towns and provinces to strictly implement the campaign against illegal gambling. He also ordered the town and provincial police chief to submit to his office a certification signed by priests and local chief executives that would prove the non-existence of jueteng in their areas.
Lomibao said the other regions in Luzon like the National Capital Region (NCR) and Regions 1, 2 and 3 as jueteng-free.
He said jueteng has stopped in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon and Metro Manila ever since President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued an all-out war against the illegal numbers game.
Lomibao last Tuesday relieved the police chiefs of Tiwi, Albay and Tinambac, Camarines Sur for their alleged failure to contain jueteng in their areas. Relieved were Senior Inspector Oscar Regala and Inspector Amado Montana, chiefs of police of the town of Tiwi and of Tinambac, respectively.
Lomibao said the two police chiefs failed to heed the one-strike policy of the police against jueteng and other forms of illegal gambling. (MSN/BBP/JFF)
(May 26, 2005 issue)
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