Former Erap mouthpiece hit with P1-M libel suit

SAN PEDRO, Laguna—Road Users Protection Advocates (Rupa) president Raymundo Junia has filed a P1–million libel suit against Stradcom information officer Margaux Salcedo for allegedly saying that he and his group were out to ruin Stradcom, the Land Transportation Office’s exclusive provider of information technology services.

He said the “libelous article” of Salcedo, former spokesperson of deposed President Joseph Estrada, came out in several newspapers on May 13 and claimed that “Junia and his advocacy group were only playing as fronts” to ruin Stradcom.

Salcedo, speaking for Stradcom, was quoted in the news report as saying: “We feel that the motives of the complainant in filing the (plunder) case should be known. With the recent attack by the (Bonifacio) Sumbilla group on the Land Transportaion Office IT facility last Dec. 9, 2010, we feel that the filing of the plunder case is part of a concerted effort by these groups (Rupa) to deliberately bring down the company (Stradcom).”

Salcedo’s statement referred to the P2.2–billion plunder case that Rupa filed on April 27 in the Office of the Ombudsman against Stradcom officers and directors over the “questionable” interconnectivity fees the company had collected from insurance companies and private emission testing centers.

Junia’s complaint filed in the Laguna prosecutor’s office here on Thursday said that in Salcedo’s statements maligned his credibility as they imputed that he was not a true advocate.

In an interview on Friday, Junia denied that his group was fronting for certain businessmen with an interest in Stradcom.

He said that although Rupa was recently incorporated, the advocacy group had championed the interest of road users for over a decade now and was recognized by the Toll Regulatory Board and the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Stradcom is entangled in a corporate dispute between its present management under Cezar Quiambao and the faction of businessmen Aderito Yujuico and Sumbilla.

On Friday, Salcedo refused to comment on the case filed by Junia, saying that she had yet to receive a copy of the charges.

“But as a personal policy, when I speak for any principal—whether former President Erap, Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino, PDP Laban, Stradcom or other personalities—I always make sure my statements are based on the truth, on hard evidence or factual observations,” she said in a text message.