Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Wednesday dubbed as “hearsay” reports that certain high profile inmates were enjoying lavish lifestyles after testifying against Senator Leila de Lima, saying there was no proof to support such allegations.
“It’s very clear here that the violations were not personally seen by Atty. Lim,” Aguirre said during his confirmation hearing at the Senate.
Lim is Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Legal Office Chief Alvin Herrera Lim, who supposedlysigned a memorandum, allegedly pertaining to the reported luxurious lifestyles being enjoyed by some inmates.
READ: Document: Aguirre OK’d privileges of inmates who ratted on De Lima
“There’s no proof that there were electronic gadgets, smart TV sets, air-conditioning units, internets, cellular phones. These are all hearsay because Atty. Lim did not see these,” Aguirre said.
He said it was “double hearsay” when Senator Leila de Lima reported this memo to the media.
“As I’ve said , since I’ve not read this confidential report, I was really surprised because I never ordered anybody to allow these cellphones etc, gadgets to the inmates including air-conditioning units…” Aguirre said. IDL