JUST as Senator Ronald dela Rosa suspected, no less than his former police subordinates would testify against him before the International Criminal Court (ICC) where he, along with former President Rodrigo Duterte and others are facing an investigation over complaints of extrajudicial killings during the previous administration.
In a statement, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency chief Ricardo de Leon admitted having met with House Speaker Martin Romualdez where former Criminal Investigation and Detection Group chief Police Maj. Gen. Romeo Caramat Jr. voluntarily offered to execute a testimony about Duterte’s bloody war against illegal drugs.
Caramat, who remains in the active PNP roster, is currently the area police commander for Northern Luzon.
“During our conversation (with Romualdez), he (Caramat) offered to disclose everything he knew about extrajudicial killings and the drug war, including the list of names targeted for killing, weekly quotas, and the payment process involved in exchange for his appointment,”de Leon said.
De Leon however clarified that the agenda for which Caramat asked his help to arrange a meeting with the House Speaker is that “because he wanted to be appointed as the next PNP chief.”
The NICA chief likewise categorically denied Sen. Dela Rosa’s allegation – that he is pressuring the police officials who have been tagged by the ICC as “persons of interest” to testify against him and former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Dela Rosa, who served as Philippine National Police chief during the Duterte administration earlier hinted at a “very, very reliable information” over a supposed meeting where Romualdez, de Leon, Ako Bicol partylist Rep. Zaldy Co and former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV allegedly forced his former police subordinates “to execute an affidavit implicating Duterte and me” in Duterte’s bloody drug war.
“It seems that they really want to erase Duterte and his allies from the face of the earth. Is there any other reason why [Romualdez] would do that?” he added.
Aside from Caramat, among the police officers Dela Rosa claimed to have been asked by de Leon and Romualdez to testify against him were former Philippine National Police chief Oscar Albayalde, former National Police Commission Commissioner Edilberto Leonardo, and former PNP chief intelligence officer Eleazar Mata.
“I categorically deny allegations by Sen. Bato Dela Rosa that I, together with Speaker Martin Romualdez and other personalities, pressured certain officials to testify against him and former President Rodrigo Duterte before the International Criminal Court,” reads part of De Leon’s statement.
When asked how Romualdez responded with Caramat’s offer, de Leon said that the House leader told them that the appointment of the PNP chief was solely the prerogative of President Marcos “and he has no influence over such decisions.”
“The Speaker also rejected Caramat’s offer to disclose information in exchange for his appointment.”
Rep. Co meanwhile corroborated de Leon’s claim and insisted that it was Caramat who made an offer in exchange for the top PNP post. The partylist congressman said that Caramat’s bargaining chip was “flatly rejected.”
As for the other ICC “persons of interest,” De Leon likewise warded off Dela Rosa’s allegation that he had discussed with Albayalde and Mata “to testify in the ICC.” (ANGEL F. JOSE)
