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Thursday, August 18, 2005
'Sound engineer' accuses opposition of 'conspiracy', 'sedition'
* But justice didn't accept complaint
A MAN claiming to be a sound engineer who said the so-called "Hello, Garci" tapes of the opposition were spliced formally filed Wednesday before the Department of Justice (DOJ) charges of conspiracy to commit sedition, insurrection and obstruction of justice against two senators, two congressmen, a former Cabinet secretary and jueteng witnesses, among others.
But the DOJ did not accept the complaint, much less entertain complainant Jonathan Tiongco saying it will just be referred to the Manila Prosecutor's Office.
In a five-page affidavit, Tiongco accused Senators Panfilo Lacson and Jose "Jinggoy" Estrada, Representatives Francis Escudero of Sorsogon and Gilbert Remulla of Cavite, former agrarian reform secretary Horacio "Boy" Morales, jueteng witnesses Sandra Cam and Wilfredo "Boy" Mayor and others of conspiring to bring down the Arroyo administration.
The complainant however appeared more annoyed about the alleged libelous statements made by Lacson against him.
"I would have just kept quiet pero sobra na sila (but they've done too much already). After aiding (Environment) Secretary (Michael) Defensor to expose anomalies found in the 'Garci' tapes, Senator Lacson ungratefully made several libelous statements against me, like besmirching my family's reputation by calling me "may sayad" or retarded, and that I am a witness for sale," he said.
Tiongco said his father, who is a lawyer, suffered a stroke when he read about Lacson's comments in the newspapers, prompting him to break his silence on an alleged "multi-faceted operations intended to unlawfully oust the President before the end of this year."
To prove that he was not as loose in the head as claimed by his detractors, Tiongco detailed in his affidavit how he came to be close to the opposition.
He said before defecting to the administration, he was once a supporter of former President Joseph Estrada and Lacson. He said his association with Estrada started during the 1998 presidential campaign because of his connection with actress Nora Aunor.
He said since then, he had established a close relationship with some opposition leaders including Representative Crispin Remulla, whom, he said, he admired for his loyalty to Estrada.
In 2002, he said the newly installed Arroyo government was perceived to be hostile to Lacson so following Crispin's orders, he would help the senator in several covert operations, which he refused to elaborate in his affidavit.
In January 2004, he was again called by Crispin for another operation to help in the campaign of Lacson and Fernando Poe Jr. He said Crispin even endorsed him to Morales, then chief strategist of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP), who then became his immediate superior.
A few days after his first meeting with Morales, he was called for a breakfast meeting with former senator Francisco Tatad in a food chain in Libis, wherein they allegedly discussed issues that could be used to demoralize the police and military ranks.
He also alleged that former senator Gregorio "Gringo" Honasan ran away with P40 million funds of the opposition intended for the "Bantay Balota" as he disclosed suspicions of opposition leaders that Honasan was betraying Poe and the secretary in coordinating with Lacson.
He said Morales also told him to form a small group to sabotage the Cebu proclamation of President Arroyo by throwing a grenade at the crowd but the plan did not materialize because at that time, Morales had been fired by President Estrada.
Sometime August 2004, Tiongco said he visited Crispin in his office while seeing Senator Estrada on a regular basis to ensure that Reyes's appointment would not be confirmed. During the times, Estrada would brush off his call for security and legal assistance to witnesses who would testify against Reyes.
In May 2005, he received another call from Estrada telling him to back off on Reyes and just support him in the jueteng gate scandal.
After submitting a manifestation sometime in July before joint committee hearings in Congress, Tiongco said he tried to submit audio analysis findings to the secretariat claiming that the tapes were not authentic but he felt slighted when Gilbert, brother of Crispin, did not accept his documents, adding that he has no credentials.
During interviews before he filed his complaint at the DOJ, Tiongco showed blown-up pictures of him with President Estrada after the 1998 elections, a video shot of his home where he had a documents against Reyes and also that of his father, Attorney Jose Tiongco.
He also claimed that contrary to the findings of the St. Luke's Medical Center Hospital who treated Poe, the late actor did not die of aneurysm but that he was poisoned by some members of the opposition.
He said during the Christmas party at the Poe's studio last December, he observed that some personal assistants of politicians had placed a kind of tablet at a glass of beer that Poe was drinking. He said this apparently triggered his death. (ECV/Sunnex)
(August 18, 2005 issue)
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