FG Mike Arroyo: JDV is a liar
abs-cbnNEWS.com | 11/23/2008 5:19 PM
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Former House speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. (JDV) is a liar, First Gentleman Jose Miguel "Mike" Arroyo said Sunday.
"I never suggested anything. That JDV is a liar and you can tell him to his face...Don't believe him," he said in an ambush interview at St. Luke's Medical Center.
Mr. Arroyo was asked by reporters on his reaction to de Venecia’s statement that the First Gentleman was the one who suggested to President Arroyo to give the Philippine government’s national broadband project to China’s ZTE Corp.
Earlier Sunday, Arroyo was discharged from St. Luke's Medical Center after a one-day confinement. At 12:40 p.m. Sunday, Arroyo was allowed by his doctors to leave the hospital after suffering from "intense stomach pain" Friday evening on board a Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight to Peru for the APEC leaders' meeting. His ailment forced the chartered PAL flight to make an emergency stop over to Osaka, Japan.
De Venecia, in an interview on ABS-CBN News Channel Sunday, said that he was with President Arroyo, the First Gentleman, and the then Commission on Elections (COMELEC) chairman Benjamin Abalos Jr. at Shenzhen, China last 2006 in order to close a deal with the board of directors of ZTE Corp. regarding the broadband project.
Turning point?
De Venecia said that it was during the golf game when the three finally made the decision among themselves to award the project to ZTE.
"Maliwanag na the turning point in the ZTE...sordid ZTE affair was the luncheon meeting and the golf game sa Shenzhen where maliwanag na maliwanag na ang First Gentleman, Si Chairman Abalos, at si Presidente Arroyo finally made the decision among themselves to give to award the project to ZTE in spite of the fact na magkakautang ang Pilipinas ng almost P16 B," said the former House speaker.
The former House speaker had previously disclosed that the golf game took place last Nov. 2, 2006 at the Shenzhen Country Club. De Venecia had said that she was invited by Mrs. Arroyo to Shenzhen the day before when he was on a vacation in Hong Kong. The government’s NBN project was then in its early stages of processing.
De Venecia’s statements on the meeting at Shenzhen was contained in his biography which he said is set to be launched in the United States.
“We'll have a book launching in Washington late next week and then another book launching in New York City through Barnes and Noble and Borders. These are the large American bookstores, and you can acquire the book now by placing an order with Amazon.com. At the same time there will be book launchings in Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco,” said de Venecia.
He said a picture in the book also reinforces his statement on the Shenzhen meeting.
“… there was a picture there which showed the President Arroyo, First Gentleman Mike Arroyo and myself, and Chairman Abalos playing golf at Shenzhen in Southern China a few minutes before we were invited to lunch by ZTE in Shenzhen at their headquarters. So hindi totoo yung sinasabi nila na hindi kami nag-meeting doon sa Shenzhen at wala doon si Presidente Arroyo at wala roon si Mike Arroyo,” said de Venecia, “And later on when they were confronted with this, they said yes we went there.”
De Venecia also reiterated his position that the proposal of his businessman son, Jose “Joey” de Venecia III, was better than the ZTE Corp’s.
Joey’ proposal in the government broadband project was to undertake by a build-operate-transfer (BOT) project, which the elder de Vanecia said is more practical than the ZTE proposal which would entail a government loan from China.
“Samantalang yung proposal ni Joey the 3rd ay walang gastos ang Pilipinas maski isang pera. Walang risk ang Pilipinas. Walang gastos ang Philippine government maski isang pera kasi it will be undertaken by a private sector investment, by a private build operate transfer BOT project instead of a Phil government loan from CHina.," said Pangasinan's 4th district representative.
Attending hearing on impeachment complaint
The elder de Venecia also said that he would be attending the hearing on the impeachment complaint filed by his son against President Arroyo which included the alleged overpriced and graft-ridden NBN-ZTE deal.
The former House speaker had endorsed the impeachment complaint which had already been declared “sufficient in form” by the House Committee on Justice. The present hearings set to resume Monday are in relation to the committee’s evaluation if the latest impeachment complaint against President Arroyo was “sufficient in substance”.
“It's my testimony plus the fact that the pictures are there to show that really the President and Chairman Abalos and First Gentleman went there and they invited me to go with them to go to the meeting at the board of directors headquarters of ZTE in China. And before that we were hosted in a golf game arranged by ZTE and Chairman Abalos in China about about two hours before we had lunch so maliwanang na maliwanag yon,” said the former House speaker.
The NBN-ZTE deal was eventually scrapped by President Arroyo.
The NBN-ZTE issue however also became the key issue in the split between President Arroyo and the elder de Venecia which led to his ouster as House Speaker last February 2008. The former House speaker’s son had earlier come out and became one of the “whistleblowers” in a Senate investigation on the allegations of overpricing and graft.
