Lozada unfazed by move to cut out-of-town trips

May 24, 2008

NBN-ZTE star witness Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada yesterday said the Senate has told him to stop his out-of-town speaking trips, saying that it could no longer afford the expenses of providing security.

Lozada was unfazed. Told that there may have been Malacañang pressure to gag him, he said no amount of pressure or threats could force him to stop his crusade.

“Tuloy pa rin ang krusada at wala na itong atrasan,” he said.

The Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines (AMRSP) which has taken Lozada under its protection was disappointed.

Sr. Estrella Castalone branded the order as a “way to scare off” potential witnesses from coming out in the open against corruption in the administration.

“What about the risks taken by Jun when he came out of the open? I don’t think this is the right decision. I don’t think money is the reason here, there’s something other than money here,” she said.

She said they had been repeatedly assured by Senate President Manuel Villar and Blue Ribbon chair Alan Peter Cayetano that money was no problem.

But she said that Lozada’s security detail complained they were having a hard time getting travel orders.

She said Senate officials told her on May 1 the Senate could only provide a four-man security detail.

Lozada originally had an eight-man security detail which was later cut to six, four of whom covered his out-of-town trips.

Castalone said if money was the problem, the ARMSP and other non-government organizations were more than willing to shoulder the expenses but said that what is at issue is not about the money but rather the truth.

“They are practically accomplices to the move to gag Lozada. Is Jun’s life worth only P2 million considering that what he told enabled the country to save P16 billion?” Castalone said. - Ashzel Hachero

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