Ex-mayor claims he’s a victim, denies favors

Rather than being a privileged inmate, former mayor Alfredo Arsenio of Lezo town, Aklan province, claimed that he was a victim of intramurals in the Cebu provincial jail.

In his court testimony yesterday, Arsenio, who faces murder charges for the death of a radio broadcaster in Kalibo, Aklan, eight years ago, denied receiving favors in and out of jail.

He confirmed that he had a birthday party in the warden’s office last month but said he was surprised when his “family” visited him on Saturday, which is not a visitors day.

Video footage of the party was supposedly provided by a disgruntled jail guard. He was transferred by the acting warden Napoleon Miranda when the videotape surfaced.

Capitol officials denied that the transfer was related to the incident.

Arsenio apologized for the controversy brought on Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia over the incident.

“I’m sorry for implicating her in the case,” he told reporters before the hearing yesterday.

The court heard a motion from Capitol officials seeking to transfer Arsenio out of the CPDRC to the Cebu City Jail.

Arsenio’s lawyer Eduardo Arriba objected to a transfer. He cited the May 26, 2008 order of Regional Trial Court Judge Sylva Paderanga directing Arsenio’s detention at the provincial jail.

He, too, denied that his client was receiving special treatment.

Though he’s a powerful political figure in Aklan, Arsenio said he has no political connections in Cebu.He denied bribing jail guards of the CPDRC.

Last Feb. 8 Arsenio was spotted by a TV5 crew and Cebu Daily News eating lunch in a restaurant near the Palace of Justice.The inmate said the lunch out with a jail guard and his lawyer was made for “humanitarian” reasons. He said his March 24 birthday party in the warden’s office was a surprise gesture by his family.

“I was just a victim of a cross fire between the warden and jail guards,” Arsenio said.

Governor Garcia in an earlier press conference, said she sought Arsenio’s transfer from the CPDRC because he could easily corrupt the jail personnel.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he doesn’t want Arsenio in the Cebu City jail as well.

Arriba said they felt insulted by the refusal of both officilas to have his client detained in either jail as if his detention was a ‘football game’ and his client was already ‘stateless.”

“Let’s not forget that Mayor Arsenio, enjoys the presumption of innocence under the Constitution. Now that he is being transferred from one detention cell to another, that caused him undue harassment. This is too much,” said thw lawyer.

Rowena Caronan of the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP), who attended yesterday’s hearing , urged the local media to continue covering Arsenio’s case.

Arsenio’s liberties resulted in the relief of two wardens and one assistant warden.

Arriba said transferring his client would be a dangerous precdent. Arsenio said he preferred the CPDRC because the Cebu City Jail is already congested.