Monday, January 15, 2007 8 face suspension for Vietnamese terrorist's exile
JUSTICE Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr. revealed on Sunday that Immigration Associate Commissioner Teodoro Delarmente will be one of eight officials of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) who have been found accountable for the illegal deportation of a suspected Vietnamese-American terrorist, Vo Van Duc.
Gonzalez is set to issue Monday an order suspending liable BI and BJMP officials based on the findings of an investigating panel led by DOJ Undersecretary Ernesto Pineda.
Gonzalez said he is still awaiting an explanation from Delarmente, who allegedly had a hand in assisting Duc's release from the custody of the BJMP in Taguig despite pending cases against him.
"He (Delarmente) issued a medical certificate and clearance to Vo Van Duc, so he could be released. But instead of bringing him (Duc) to the airport, he was brought to a Manila hotel where stayed for two more weeks," he said.
After two weeks in the hotel, Duc, who is wanted for various bombing cases in Thailand and the US, left without a trace and was now feared to be hiding somewhere in the country and biding his time before he could sow trouble again.
DOJ sources said Duc was planning to attack the ongoing 12th Asean Summit in Cebu City, but the intelligence community has yet to confirm this.
Gonzalez said there were other indications that Delarmente could have been "wined and dined" in agreeing to give concessions to a suspected criminal, but he would prefer to hear him out first. He said it was still premature to say if Delarmente would be fired because of the evidence linking him to the so-called freedom-for-sale anomaly in the BI, as revealed by Surigao del Norte Representative Robert "Ace" Barbers.
Aside from Delarmente, the justice secretary said he has also asked Associate Commissioners Jose Cabochan and Roy Almoro to shed light on their alleged involvement in Duc's illegal release.
However, Gonzalez said only middle to low-level officials who allegedly connived to release from jail and deport Duc will be suspended, while high ranking officials will get only a mere slap in the wrist for the fracas.
"All the commissioners have been asked to explain why they should not be charged with graft for misconduct and mismanagement. The BJMP officials could be charged with infidelity in their custodial duties," Gonzalez said.
He further said that based on the report of the DOJ panel, the affidavits of the three commissioners were full of "conflicting statements," adding that the actions of their subordinates were the commissioners' command responsibility.
Asked whether Immigration Commissioner Alipio Fernandez will be included in the investigation, Gonzalez answered in the negative, saying Fernandez was not around when the order for Duc's release was signed.
Duc was arrested by BI agents late 2001 along with Vietnamese-Swiss Hyunh Thuan Ngok for "overstaying" and engaging in unauthorized political activities.
Undersecretary Fidel Exconde, a member of the investigating panel, also said Fernandez signed the Duc's release order without verifying if the necessary clearances from the police, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), and the courts were met in order to ensure that there are no pending cases against the foreigner to be deported.
Fernandez had claimed during the hearing that they have no hand in securing these clearances as this was the job of their deputy officers and executive directors of the bureau. He said when he learned of the irregularity, he immediately ordered his deputies to explain.
He further said he did not know that Duc was facing criminal charges before a trial court, since the documents presented to him showed that he violated only immigration laws for "overstaying" and engaging in unauthorized political activity, and did not indicate that the suspected terrorist was found in possession of explosives.
Last Wednesday, Gonzalez met with the three commissioners and BI lawyer, Alex Fernandez, a brother and chief of staff of the immigration chief, "to confront them with certain facts."
An official privy to Gonzalez's meeting with the four commissioners said the panel recommended the immediate suspension of the four officials, but two of them urged Gonzalez not to immediately implement the order because of the upcoming elections.
"They said it would look bad if they would have this case hanging over their heads while they are campaigning," the source said.
One of the four BI officials will run for congressman in Laguna while the other official's wife is a re-electionist for councilor in Quezon City. (ECV/Sunnex)
