Witness Dennis Cunanan’s appeal: I’m here; spare my children

By: Nancy C. Carvajal, Norman Bordadora - 11 years ago

Dennis Cunanan (dost.gov.ph photo), Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile, Senator Jinggoy Estrada and Senator Bong Revilla Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTOS

Spare my children.

Dennis Cunanan, the latest whistle-blower to come forward in the P10-billion pork barrel scam, made this appeal on Saturday, claiming that his children had been receiving calls from unidentified callers asking about their father and his whereabouts.

He also complained of male strangers suddenly appearing in the vicinity of his family’s Quezon City residence.

“My client says he is no saint. He asks that they deal with him, not his family, particularly his children,” said Cunanan’s lawyer, Odessa Bernardo.

According to Bernardo, one of Cunanan’s children received the phone calls from the unidentified callers who questioned the child about his father, asking about personal information.

“He has young children. He is appealing that they be spared,” Bernardo said.

The lawyer said the records of the village security group showed that unidentified men had been observed “casing” the house of her client.

“There were unidentified men noted near the house of our client and some of them were seen surreptitiously filming the house,” Bernardo said.

The lawyer said the incidents had been reported to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and were being “amply addressed” by the director of the DOJ Witness Protection Program (WPP), Martin Menes.

She added that her client, while worried and anxious for his family’s safety, had expressed confidence in the WPP’s leadership and its ability to protect his family from harm.

Bernardo also said her client’s children remained at the family residence, and appealed to the media not to give specific details of the house’s location and appearance.

The lawyer denied that the house, which she said was owned by Cunanan’s brother, had been bought for P40 million.

“He confirmed they lived there, but denied the report that the acquisition price was P40 million. It was low because it was acquired years ago,” Bernardo said.

She said the house was owned by Cunanan’s businessman brother, Darius, who “until now is paying the amortization of the bank loan.”

The lawyer promised to release all documents, including the statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) of Cunanan at the Senate hearing this week.

His testimony

Cunanan, one of the respondents in the P10-billion pork scam plunder complaint in the Ombudsman, has offered to turn state witness and has been granted that status provisionally by the DOJ.

He has executed an affidavit that while he was deputy head (now on leave) of the Technology Resource Center (TRC) from 2004 to 2009 when the TRC was the implementing agency of pork barrel-funded projects of several legislators, Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Revilla Jr. phoned him to make sure that the TRC would direct their pork entitlements to their chosen nongovernment organizations (NGOs) controlled by alleged scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles.

Cunanan estimated that about P600 million in lawmakers’ pork allocations was coursed through the TRC when he was the agency’s deputy head.

Estrada, Revilla and Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile are the three senators facing a plunder complaint in the Ombudsman over the pork scam. All three have denied any wrongdoing in the disbursement of their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) allocations.

Cunanan has maintained that he received no kickbacks during his tenure as TRC deputy director general from 2004 to 2009.

Bernardo said her client was disappointed that Estrada has announced that the latter would no longer be attending the Senate blue ribbon committee hearing on the scam on March 6.

“I was hoping I could finally face Senator Estrada, so the public can tell who is telling the truth,” Cunanan was quoted as saying.

Bernardo said her client was aware that there is a concerted effort to discredit him.

“He is prepared to face them and is prepared to tell the truth,” the lawyer said.

Not fair

Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III on Saturday said that it was not fair for Cunanan to be made to prove that he didn’t earn anything from the scam when there are no allegations to disprove.

Let those that have information on Cunanan’s lavish lifestyle allege and prove that he amassed wealth from the P10-billion pork barrel scam, the senator said.

Sen. Grace Poe earlier called for a lifestyle check on Cunanan to prove that he did not also make money from the scam.

In response, Cunanan volunteered to waive his bank secrecy rights and have his bank accounts and other indications of wealth scrutinized.

There have been allegations that Cunanan leads a lavish lifestyle that his income as a government official would not be able to support.

“There should be somebody who would say that he benefited [from the scam]. It will be unfair if it will be Cunanan who will prove that he did not,” Pimentel said in an interview with dwIZ radio.

Against rules of evidence

“Let those who have the information prove that he did,” he said.

To do otherwise would be unfair to Cunanan as it would go against the rules on evidence.

“Under the law on the rules of evidence, it is unfair to prove something negative, that something didn’t happen,” Pimentel added.

The senator also urged everyone to review the affidavits of Benhur Luy and the other scam whistle-blowers and find out what they said about Cunanan.

“If none among them said that they gave him money and that he benefited, it might be true that he didn’t,” Pimentel said.

Pimentel said he expected Cunanan to be grilled on the extent of his wealth when he faces the Senate blue ribbon committee on Thursday to testify on the participation of some senators in the scam.

“He will be asked pointblank whether he benefited or not. The answer we would anticipate is that he did not. Then it will be up to those who know something to prove that he did,” he said.