'Euro generals' have a chance to redeem themselves
By JESUS F. LLANTO, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak | 11/15/2008 3:19 AM
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The testimonies of former Philippine National Police (PNP) comptroller Eliseo dela Paz and other police officials, including PNP chief Jesus Verzosa, will be the PNP’s chance to clear its name and redeem itself from the anomaly surrounding the Moscow fund mess.
The controversy, which started when dela Paz was held by Russian airport officials on Oct. 11 for carrying an amount of money (105,000 euros or nearly P7 million) beyond the airport’s outbound cash limit, has dragged the names of high-ranking officials of the PNP and has tainted the image of the police department, especially after the officials issued conflicting statements about the scandal.
If all the invited officials will appear and testify on the joint hearing of the foreign affairs and Blue Ribbon committees on Saturday, the Senate will have the chance to trace the money trail.
25 were invited
Apart from Dela Paz, who is now under the custody of the Senate, 24 others were summoned by the Senate—including Verzosa, retired director Rolando Garcia of the Philippine Center for Transnational Crime; Deputy Director General Ismael Rafanan deputy chief for operations; Deputy Director General Emmanuel Carta, deputy chief for administration; Director Romeo Ricardo, director for plans; Silverio Alarcio Jr, director for operations; Chief Superintendent Raul Bacalzo, director of the PNP Investigation and Detective Management; and retired Director Jaime Caringal, former regional director for Zamboanga Peninsula.
Also invited are Senior Superintendent Tomas Rentoy III, chief of the PNP budget division, who released the P6.93 million to Dela Paz; Director Edgardo Acuňa of the PNP personnel and records management; Director German Doria Supt Elmer Pellobello; Nixon Dizon of PCTC, and the wives of Dela Paz and Versoza. Doria issued the guidelines on foreign travel while Acuña issued the travel authority.
Where did the money come from?
The testimonies of the police officials, especially those who were involved in the release of the funds, are expected to shed light on the source of the money.
Dela Paz and Versoza have issued conflicting statements about the source of the money confiscated from Dela Paz.
Dela Paz claimed that the money was “cash advance” for “emergency cases” of the PNP delegation that attended the Interpol Summit at St. Petersburg. Versoza, however, said the money was for intelligence purposes and was intended for the purchase of intelligence equipment.
Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno, meanwhile, had said that he did not authorize the release of the funds but said the money was contingency fund for the group.
The Senate panel also invited Tyrone Arejola, a Chinese businessman friend of Dela Paz, who allegedly gave him 45,000 euros and asked the former comptroller to buy him two designer watches from Europe.
PNP Spokesperson Nicanor Bartolome said the PNP is unaware of Dela Paz’s 45,000 euros.
Ombudsman and House probes
Despite their scheduled appearance on the Senate investigation, the police officials involved in the controversy are not yet off the hook and they have to make sure that they will be able to come up with consistent and convincing statements since most of them will also appear on the separate probes by the Ombudsman and the House committee on public order and safety.
The House investigation is expected to start next week while a clarificatory questioning is set on Wednesday at the Office of the Ombudsman.
