The Unlawyer

Today Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada Jr. will resume his testimony before the Senate Blue Ribbon committee about his role and that of certain other personalities in the aborted National Broadband Network (NBN) project. He will not be alone: Arroyo allies confirm Senate attendance.

Since he uttered those explosive words of his last Friday, he has certainly heaped his share of praises from many, including one from the Philippines’ association of Catholic bishops, and his share of brickbats as well, including a horrid racist slur against his Chinese ancestry:

“On Friday, [chief presidential legal counsel Sergio] Apostol reacted on Lozada’s testimony in the Senate hearing on the investigation of the controversial national broadband deal between the government and China’s ZTE Corp.

“”He is a crying witness like a crying lady. Di ba sabi niya ‘probinsyanong Intsik?’ Intsik pala siya eh. Kung ako ipapa-deport ko na ‘yan. Magulo ka dito,” said Apostol.

“(He is a crying witness like a crying lady. Did he not say he is a Chinese from the provinces? So he’s a Chinese. If it were for me I’ll have him deported. He’s unruly here.)”

Mr. Apostol, who was immediately criticized for his outburst, has since apologized for his remarks, as well as he should.

Mr. Lozada will also be sued for libel by former Commission on Elections chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr., whom the former has accused of brokering the project, incidentally for as much as PHP 200 million, which is the same amount Mr. Abalos allegedly – allegedly, I said – promised then economic development authoritiy chief Romulo Neri if the contract became a done deal.

Speaking of Mr. Neri, there is an article attributed to Mr. Lozada that seeks to defend his erstwhile friend against the many accusations hurled against the former: What Neri Is Too Afraid to Tell the Public, and Why.

The Warrior Lawyer condemned Mr. Lozada as a “pious fraud,” but then again, rare is the instance when a court can obtain the cooperation of a lily-white witness. Notwithstanding this snide remark, he – and I by the way – agreed that Mr. Lozada was a credible witness nonetheless, as he readily uttered many statements prejudicial to his own self-interest, such as admitting to committing numerous corrupt practices while in office. Mr. Lozada could have taken the Fifth but didn’t, oddly enough.

At any rate, the Senate may extend to Mr. Lozada a ray of hope: Sen. Alan Cayetano says Lozada could be given immunity.

There is, however, one disturbing aspect about Mr. Lozada’s testimony that may cast significant doubt regarding his credibility. On several occasions he mentioned that he has witnessed the ugly side of the State. He also vividly described the exquisite terror of being taken for a ride by unknown men to an unknown fate. Yet he willingly left the premises of his safe haven in the company of a police officer:

“But even when he was delivered to the sanctuary of the La Salle Green Hills school shortly before midnight of Tuesday, the group of policemen in plainclothes, who included a Colonel Mascarinas, put him under tight guard, preventing him from talking and moving freely, until he was able to hold his press conference early on Thursday morning and was fetched by the security men from the Senate, which had summoned him in its investigation of the $329 million ZTE-NBN project.

“Mascarinas would regularly check on him in his room at the La Salle Brother’s House, and sat in a van outside the dormitory while four to six members of the Police Security and Protection Office of the Philippine National Police kept vigil at the lobby.

“And asserting his authority, Mascarinas took him out of the La Salle dormitory on Wednesday to a restaurant in Libis, Quezon City, to sign various documents that would belie his abduction and knowledge on the overpricing and bribery in the ZTE project. [Emphasis mine - Ed.]“

The last paragraph above seems to contradict what Mr. Lozada said in the Senate regarding his destination last Wednesday:

“So kinabukasan ho, kinuha uli ako. Dinala ako sa office ni Atty Bautista where he has already prepared the affidavit for me. And I had to fill out certain blanks there. Address ng opisina namin. Anong klaseng engineer ba ako. After that, nai-type na nila. Pinakain na po ako ni Atty Bautista and his wife, who is a very gracious host.”

It could just be that the Inquirer made a mistake, after all it’s not a verbatim quote, but my point stands all the same.