Sen. Lacson tags ex-PNP chief Versoza as ‘missing link’ in chopper sale
It’s retired Director General Jesus Verzosa.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson on Tuesday identified the former Philippine National Police chief as the “missing link” in the sale to the PNP of secondhand choppers allegedly owned by Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo.
“On the PNP side, we are looking for the link, the missing link whom FG (former First Gentleman Arroyo) talked with to sell his old helicopters,” Lacson told reporters.
“I’m referring to Jess Verzosa, actually,” he later said.
Lacson said Verzosa, who served under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, should make a “sacrifice to save the institution that we both love.”
The senator said he had relayed the appeal to some of Verzosa’s batch mates at the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1976.
“The prevailing sentiment is to file charges against everyone who participated in the bidding, negotiation, inspection and acceptance of the choppers,” Lacson said, referring to the mind-set of other members of the Senate blue ribbon committee.
“Can you just imagine how many police officers—active and retired—would face charges? There would be so many of them,” he said.
Lacson added: “In the meantime, (Verzosa) could actually absolve everyone in the PNP. He would just have to say that he had been ordered, that he could not do anything but give guidance (to his men) to go through the negotiation process and buy the helicopters.”
Lacson asked Verzosa, who was five years his junior at the PMA, to finally speak up.
A resource person, bookkeeper Rowena del Rosario, remained detained at the Senate after she was cited for contempt.
