Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa (Senate Public Relations and Data Bureau)
The chief of the Nationwide Intelligence Coordinating Company (Nica) and a key member of the Home of Representatives on Thursday denied allegations by Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa that that they had pressured retired and energetic responsibility police officers to testify in opposition to him and former President Rodrigo Duterte within the Worldwide Felony Court docket (ICC).
Dela Rosa, Duterte’s first nationwide police chief, advised a bunch of Senate reporters on Wednesday that he had “very, very dependable data” that Speaker Martin Romualdez, Nica chief Ricardo de Leon, Ako Bicol occasion listing Rep. Zaldy Co, the Home appropriations panel chair, and former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV met the police officers “to persuade them to execute an affidavit implicating Duterte and me” in Duterte’s bloody drug battle.
READ: ‘Bato’ prepared to be interviewed by ICC prosecutors
“It appears that evidently they actually need to erase Duterte and his allies from the face of the earth. Is there every other purpose why [Romualdez] would do this?” he added.
Caramat, Albayalde
Dela Rosa stated De Leon and the others talked to former Philippine Nationwide Police chief Oscar Albayalde, former Felony Investigation and Detection Group chief Police Maj. Gen. Romeo Caramat Jr., former Nationwide Police Fee Commissioner Edilberto Leonardo, and former PNP chief intelligence officer Eleazar Mata.
“I categorically deny allegations by Sen. Bato dela Rosa that I, along with Speaker Martin Romualdez and different personalities, pressured sure officers to testify in opposition to him and former President Rodrigo Duterte earlier than the Worldwide Felony Court docket,” De Leon stated in an announcement.
In keeping with De Leon, he accompanied Caramat to fulfill Romualdez “as a result of he needed to precise his curiosity to be appointed the subsequent PNP chief.”
“Throughout our dialog, he (Caramat) provided to reveal every thing he knew about extrajudicial killings and the drug battle, together with the listing of names focused for killing, weekly quotas, and the cost course of concerned in alternate for his appointment,” he stated.
President’s prerogative
However De Leon stated Romualdez advised them that the appointment of the PNP chief was solely the prerogative of President Marcos “and he has no affect over such choices.”
“The Speaker additionally rejected Caramat’s supply to reveal data in alternate for his appointment,” De Leon stated.
De Leon additionally denied the allegation of Dela Rosa that he had mentioned with Albayalde and Mata “to testify within the ICC.”
Co admitted assembly Caramat twice, however that it was the police official who had provided to inform all concerning the brutal drug battle, not him or the Speaker.
“There was by no means any point out of testifying in opposition to anybody earlier than the ICC,” he stated, including that Caramat’s supply to testify in opposition to Duterte and Dela Rosa was “flatly rejected” by Romualdez.
Trillanes earlier stated the ICC had already talked to round 50 former and incumbent police officers relating to the crime in opposition to humanity by Duterte in relation to his drug battle.
Dela Rosa claimed that De Leon and Trillanes had organized the conferences with the Speaker.
Final week, Trillanes disclosed that he had requested the Worldwide Felony Police Group to concern a blue discover in opposition to Dela Rosa, Albayalde, Caramat, Leonardo and Mata.
“Those who actually tried to persuade (Albayalde and the others) have been De Leon and Trillanes,” Dela Rosa stated.
Regardless of the Speaker’s supposed presence in all of the conferences, he stated the 4 police officers didn’t comply with function witnesses in opposition to him and Duterte.
“I’m grateful to them as a result of they stood their floor,” the senator stated of his former subordinates.
“They know what’s flawed and what’s proper. These persons are PMA (Philippine Navy Academy) graduates. They know braveness, integrity and loyalty of their hearts and minds,” he stated.
Stab within the again
He lamented the supposed efforts to steer the retired and energetic PNP officers to testify in opposition to him and Duterte. “It’s like being stabbed within the again,” he stated. “The identical authorities [saying] that we’re not recognizing them (the ICC) … is doing the legwork for the ICC.”
Solicitor Basic Menardo Guevarra stated in late July that the Philippine authorities wouldn’t stand in the way in which of the ICC’s investigation of Duterte’s bloody battle on medication.
“[The Philippines] has no authorized responsibility to lend any help to the ICC prosecutor in conducting his investigation. However the Philippine authorities can not cease him from continuing any approach he needs,” Guevarra stated, referring to the ICC prosecutor.
Duterte has repeatedly stated he wouldn’t cooperate with the ICC probe.
Requested whether or not it was the Speaker who had directed De Leon and Trillanes to talk with Albayalde and the others, he stated: “Who else will get them organized?”
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“Is it simply coincidence that once they spoke with the 4 police officers, the 4 of them have been additionally there?” he stated, referring to Romualdez, Co, De Leon and Trillanes.
