Senator Richard Gordon. INQUIRER FILES
Senator Richard Gordon held in contempt on Thursday a former official of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), a dismissed police officer, and two others linked to the alleged smuggling of P11-billion worth of “shabu” into the country.
Sacked PDEA Deputy Director General for Administration Ismael Fajardo, dismissed policeman Eduardo Acierto, Marina Signapan, and a certain Emily Laquingan, were all cited in contempt during the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s hearing on the alleged drug smuggling.
Signapan is the owner of shipment consignee SMYD Trading, and Laquingan is the wife of Hsu Chun Chung, a Chinese national also linked to the shipment.
All four were absent during the hearing.
“The contempt order is now formal. We are now going to issue contempt orders so we can get these people back here,” Gordon, who chairs the committee, said during the hearing.
Gordon lamented the absence of Fajardo, whom he said had refrained from attending Senate hearings since his name was implicated in the alleged shipment.
Acierto has not been attending hearings as well. Both Fajardo and Acierto were earlier implicated by former Customs intelligence officer Jimmy Guban in the alleged drug smuggling.
Signapan, meanwhile, did not attend Thursday’s hearing, claiming she was sick.
Gordon looked for Signapan’s medical certificate, but she apparently only sent a text message.
“This meeting was called almost two or three weeks ago,” Gordon said. “A text is not sufficient, you know that.”
“She’s been trying to evade us. The chair declares her in contempt. We’re not going to let anybody run circles around us,” he said.
Signapan was earlier cited in contempt during the committee’s hearing on September 19. Gordon said she had consistently lied in her testimonies. /cbb
READ: Gordon cites alleged consignee of P6.8B ‘shabu’ shipment for contempt