Lawyer Jose Virgilio “JV” Bautista, one of those shown the door by Senate security, said the Senate subpanel’s treatment of him and Navotas City Rep. Tobias “Toby” Tiangco showed that Senate Blue Ribbon committee chairman Sen. Teofisto Guingona III has “lost control” of Senators Antonio Trillanes IV, Alan Peter Cayetano and Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III.
“Sa takbo ng mga insidente na ‘to, parang hindi na rin ginaganahan ang ating Pangalawang Pangulo na pumunta sa mother committee… Nakikita nya hindi naman pala kontrolado ni Senator Guingona itong nagwawalang tatlong senador. ‘Yung iniiwasan ni VP na mangyari sa subcommittee ay baka mangyari doon sa mother committee, ganon din lang yon,” he said in an interview on dzBB radio Sunday.
Bautista, however, added the decision on whether or not to attend the probe is still up to Binay.
Cayetano barred both Bautista and Tiangco from speaking at the hearing last Oct. 30, saying they were not invited as resource persons or witnesses.
He then ordered the Senate sergeant-at-arms to escort the two executives of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) out of the session hall.
The Blue Ribbon main committee has formally invited Binay to appear at the Senate to shed light on purported irregularities in the construction of the P2.7-billion Makati building.
Challenge: Probe Drilon
Despite being thrown out of the Senate hearing last week, Bautista said he will show up at the next hearing scheduled on Thursday, armed with an authorization letter signed by Binay himself to prove he can speak on the vice president’s behalf.
“Magdadala na kami [ni Congressman Tiangco] ng written authority galing sa ating VP para wala nang masabi. At kung totoo ‘yung salita ni Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, kung siya ay talagang lalaki, tindigan niya ang salita niya. Magpakalalaki siya. Ang sinabi niya, welcome ang VP at ang kanyang mga kasamahan para dumalo at mag cross-examine ng witnesses. Pupunta ho ako doon. Iko-cross examine ko ang witnesses nila,” he said.
Cayetano said on Oct.2 that he is willing to move to suspend committee rules and allow Binay to question the witnesses — as long as the vice president shows up at the probe and allow himself to also be cross-examined.
In a separate statement, Tiangco, UNA’s interim president, challenged the blue ribbon committee to investigate Senate President Franklin Drilon over the alleged overpricing of the Iloilo Convention Center (ICC) to prove it is also aggressive in probing the administration’s allies.
“We are resigned to the fact that the vice president can never have an independent and fair probe in the Senate. However, we wanted to see if indeed they don’t have a double standard brand of justice,” he said.
Even as he issued the challenge, Tiangco is doubtful any investigation will be launched against Drilon, the vice chairman of the ruling Liberal Party.
The Senate president is facing criminal charges in connection with the alleged overpriced construction of the ICC.
“Well, meron kunwari na nagfo-float ng idea na imbestigahan daw si Senator Drilon if there’s evidence at hand. Lahat puro pang-PR lang, but we wonder why there has been no concrete action taken by any of the administration senators to file a resolution to investigate the Senate president,” he said. — Xianne Arcangel/JDS, GMA News
