Vitaliano Aguirre II —EDWIN BACASMAS
Two senators on Friday sought an investigation of Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II’s purported grant of special privileges to inmates in exchange for testifying against Sen. Leila de Lima at a House of Representatives’ drug inquiry.
They noted that the allegations could compromise Aguirre’s credibility as chief of an office that demands fairness and probity.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said Malacañang or even the Senate should initiate an investigation of Aguirre’s supposed instruction to jail guards to give high-profile convicts access to communication equipment and special amenities while held at a military jail.
“This should be independently investigated by the Office of the President or the Senate. The [office of the] DOJ [Department of Justice] secretary is a very powerful position,” Gatchalian said. “Allegations of undue biases and manipulation can definitely erode its credibility to dispense justice.”
De Lima backed the call and urged the administration to end its alleged “deceptions and hypocrisies.” President Duterte, Aguirre and other allies are among those who had tagged De Lima in the drug trade, claiming she took drug money to support her senatorial bid.
“This yet again another scandal in this administration should be seriously and thoroughly investigated,” she said.
A Dec. 9, 2016, confidential memorandum of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) showed that a military investigation busted the inmates’ access to mobile phones and internet connection, and use of smart television sets and air-conditioning units.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines agreed to hold eight convicts at its custodial facility in Camp Aguinaldo in September at the height of the congressional hearings against De Lima, but set guidelines barring the entry of contraband, including communication devices.
The memo, sent by BuCor Legal Office Chief Alvin Herrera Lim to BuCor Director General Benjamin delos Santos, recounted a meeting among the AFP, the BuCor and the Philippine National Police, which was tasked to secure the inmates.
Citing the AFP investigation, the memo said “elements of both the PNP and BuCor invoked that they are just following the express instruction of the Hon. Vitaliano Aguirre II to allow the entry of the above-enumerated gadgets in return for the testimony they gave during the congressional inquiry on the proliferation of drugs inside New Bilibid Prison.”
Delos Santos forwarded the document to Aguirre himself on Dec. 16, without any alterations or notations on Lim’s memo, as shown in a separate document.
But Aguirre on Thursday denied giving such privileges and said the Inquirer report quoting the document was wrong. However, he said he had ordered BuCor officials to inspect the AFP facility and seize contraband if they find any.
De Lima cited how Aguirre and other officials involved in making such concession with the inmates may have “concealed or suppressed” the documents as they are “very sensitive as they are explosive.”
She noted that neither Aguirre nor Delos Santos had denied the existence of the documents.
“Aguirre should answer the question: Did his office receive these documents? If so, what did he do, if any? Why did he order an investigation into the contraband just now? Those documents speak for themselves,” De Lima said.
The senator said the documents just showed how the administration was pulling out all the stops just to pin her down on drug charges. Aguirre said earlier this week that state prosecutors were close to resolving drug complaints against De Lima. The senator acknowledged that her arrest might be imminent.
“So who are now the real protectors and coddlers of drug convicts, drug lords?” De Lima said.
“As I’ve been saying, the President and his men will do anything and everything just to destroy me, including sleeping with the enemies. Their end game is not really war on drugs but war on De Lima! What a bunch of hypocrites! It’s a sham war on drugs!” she added.
De Lima has several times denied drug allegations against her, saying it was part to taint her name for publicly opposing the President’s controversial policies, including the bloody war on drugs.
On Thursday, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV called on the Commission on Appointments (CA) to block Aguirre’s nomination to his post, as he is set to face the body again on Feb. 15. Trillanes, also a fierce administration critic, had opposed Aguirre’s nomination last week, causing his appointment to be deferred.
Sen. Joel Villanueva said Aguirre should “explain it [the incident] and convince every member of the CA that he deserves to be confirmed as the secretary of justice.” He said the opposition of just one member was enough to cause the deferment or rejection of his confirmation.