Senator Panfilo Lacson. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines – Senator Panfilo Lacson insinuated on Thursday that the camp of former Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. might be behind the multiple murder charges filed against him in connection with the alleged Kuratong Baleleng rubout in 1995.
Lacson was head of the Task Force Habagat under the office of the Presidential Anti-Crime Commission (PACC), which was being headed by then Vice President Joseph Estrada.
At that time, he said, Estrada was a shoo-in for president in 1998 and his political opponents used him to get to the former vice president.
“Noong panahon na yan siyempre, kung sino ang kalaban sa pulitika ni dating Vice President Estrada, yan talaga ang nagpipilit na palabasin na rubout at sila ang nagpupurisgi makasuhan kami hoping madala ang controversy kay Vice President Estrada para makaapekto sa kanyang kandatura noong 1998 (At that time of course, Estrada’s opponents were trying to make it appear that it was a rubout and they were really working to have us charged in court in the hope that the controversy would lead to Vice President Estrada and affect his candidacy),” Lacson said
Asked who was Estrada’s opponent that time, the senator said, “Si JDV (de Venecia’s initials) ang kalaban, pero sila sa administration so sa kanila ang poder at sa kanila ang impluwensya. So I would say yung mga kasamahan nila nagfa-fan ng apoy para hindi mamatay ang kaso. At masasabi ko dahil privy ako sa mga ibang pangyayari ang target noon si Vice President Estrada.”
(JDV was the opponent, but his camp belonged to the administration so they have the power and influence, So I would say his men keeping the case alive. Since I’m privy then to what was happening, I can say that the target then was Vice President Estrada.)
Lacson said he had no proof that De Venecia himself was involved but said he was told by the late general Jewel Canson, one of the accused in the case, someone from the camp of De Venecia had told him to implicate him in the hope that he would pin down Estrada.
De Venecia ran but lost to Estrada in the 1998 presidential election. Three years after, Estrada was ousted in office because of corruption allegations.
Seventeen years since the filing of the Kuratong Baleleng case, the Supreme Court upheld Wednesday a lower court’s decision, absolving Lacson and other respondents of any criminal liability.