Deception: The Shocking Truth behind Leni and Jesse Robredo Part 2
“There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.” - Arthur Conan Doyle
CHAPTER 9: A ROUGH START
It was Mar Roxas, Jesse’s close friend and the Liberal Party’s self-proclaimed successor to President Aquino, who lobbied hard for his appointment to the DILG. Upon his death, it would be revealed that Jesse never really enjoyed PNoy’s (President Noynoy Aquino) complete trust as he was earlier given the post in an “acting” capacity. In fact, the President himself temporarily held the Interior and Local Government portfolio before finally acquiescing to Roxas’ request in July 2010. News reports would later reveal that while PNoy and Jesse were allies, they had differences that surfaced during the election campaign. Aquino later admitted this, telling Palace reporters that he first wanted to make sure that he can get along with Robredo, who was in an "evaluation period [ABS]."
“There are various reasons kung bakit (why) acting. In the case of Jesse, we had some differences during the campaign as to style. We want to make sure we can really work with each other well. It does no good to get him through the whole process of the CA only at the end of the day to find out that there might be difficulties in our working style, among others, our core philosophy, so we did agree na acting na muna (for the meantime that it's going to be in an acting capacity),” Aquino said. “May (there's an) evaluation period, siguro check ang working style (Perhaps let's check the working style), after two months sigurado na tayo (if we're sure), we still have certain things discussed,” he added. “Dadalawang buwan pa lang kami nagkakasubukan kung talaga nga bang kaya naming mag-mesh (we have worked together for only two months to see if we're gonna mesh).”
Their personal differences notwithstanding, there seems to be a deeper reason behind the President's refusal to appoint Jesse in a more permanent capacity. This peculiar arrangement, however baffling, can be explained by two words: Balay and Samar.
It is public knowledge that President Aquino’s inner circle was divided into two factions: The Balay and Samar groups. Both camps, named after the location of their headquarters during the 2010 presidential elections, were engaged in an internal power struggle to control key cabinet positions in the new government. The Balay faction was the one led by Mar Roxas, who bitterly lost the Vice-Presidency in a surprise upset to Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, with whom the Samar faction was purportedly aligned. After his devastating loss, Mar instead set his eyes on controlling important positions in Aquino’s cabinet, apparently in preparation for a Presidential bid come 2016. Executive Secretary Paquito “Jojo” Ochoa, a close friend of the President, became the Samar faction's de facto head. His appointment reportedly raised questions from Mar’s group who expected a Liberal Party stalwart to get the position. With the highly coveted Executive Secretary position gone, Mar’s group jockeyed for the remaining cabinet posts, especially the ones they deemed ‘vital’ for 2016. Among these was the DILG portfolio.
LEFT: Roxas, Balay RIGHT: Ochoa, Samar
It cannot be denied that Jesse Robredo and Mar Roxas were like brothers. During the election, Mar was responsible for Jesse’s assignment as the Liberal Party’s national sortie manager. In her interviews after Jesse’s death, Leni would jokingly refer to Mar as her husband’s “second wife [Politics].”
In a Facebook status message, Aika recalled how Roxas, then the Transportation Secretary, was a regular fixture at their household — whether he was there or not.
“He (Roxas) was a regular breakfast date, whose name would often come up during dinner conversations along with the many stories of what it was like to be a part of PNoy’s cabinet,” she said in the post made public on Friday, when President Benigno Aquino III endorsed the Interior Secretary’s presidential bid.
Aika, the eldest daughter of Jesse and Leni, said her father and Roxas had gone a long way - having known each other way back when the Robredo patriarch was mayor and the Interior Secretary held the trade portfolio in the Estrada administration.
“Papa had given me the impression that Mar was someone he could and would go to battle with… He was a Mar Roxas believer through and through,” she said.
Aika said Jesse was “all set to help Mar” as he was gearing for a presidential run in 2009, but eventually helped out then-Senator Aquino because of Roxas’ request.
“When he (Roxas) gave way to PNoy for the presidency, he asked Papa to focus on PNoy instead because he seemed to need it more at that time,” she said.
Though Roxas’ presidential ambition didn’t materialize then, the bond between him and Jesse remained strong until the latter died in 2012 in a plane crash.
“Mar returned the favor by sticking to Papa until the very end. He was the very first cabinet secretary who gave Mama a call when Papa’s plane was missing, who kept updating us on a regular basis during the search, and was also the first to let us know when it was found,” Aika said.
More than any other member of President Aquino’s inner circle, Mar Roxas had a personal stake in the highly strategic DILG post. The DILG not only assisted the President in the general supervision of local governments, it likewise controlled the country’s then 140,000 strong police force [DILG]. With his eyes set firmly on a 2016 presidential bid, losing control of the DILG was something that Mar simply could not afford.
Due to the one year COMELEC ban on the appointment of losing candidates, Roxas himself could not take advantage of this position so he had to make sure the DILG goes to someone he completely trusts. Who else but his reliable wing man and close confidante Jesse Robredo? Given his extensive background as a multi-awarded local government leader, Jesse appeared to be the perfect man for the job.
But the President did not seem to share Roxas’ enthusiasm. Not only did he dislike Jesse Robredo, he distrusted him as well. This inherent distrust was not altogether misplaced. Despite being allies, Jesse and Noynoy were never really close. Jesse was Mar's guy and PNoy would have preferred his own trusted man to head the DILG, yet he cannot refuse Mar after giving the Executive Secretary Post to his friend Ochoa. Doing so would have incurred the wrath of the Balay faction.
Mar and Jesse, 2010
After all, upon conducting thorough background checks on all his prospective appointees, Noynoy already heard rumors and stories about Jesse's shrewd and duplicitous character. It also didn't help Jesse that PNoy's sisters Ballsy and Pinky, who were partial to the Samar bloc, were not in favor of his appointment to the agency. Perhaps this had something to do with their closeness to Vice-President Jejomar Binay, who was also said to be interested in securing the DILG post - something that would give him a clear edge come 2016, when he would run for President after Noynoy Aquino's term expires [ABS].
Mar knew this, so he did everything to keep Binay, who now officially became his arch rival, from getting the post. Needless to say, the animosity between the two camps intensified when Mar's group, composed mainly of the Liberal Party, the Black and White Movement, and the party list group Akbayan, started accusing the Samar camp of engineering the Noy-Bi (Noy Aquino and Jojo Binay) tandem, which led to Mar's loss.
Luis Ortega, a former Naga City Councilor and a vocal Robredo critic who filed graft cases against Jesse together with Emilio Aguinaldo in the Office of the Ombudsman, likewise sent a letter to Malacañang detailing Jesse's corruption and anomalies. Prior to Jesse's appointment, Noynoy was fully aware of his background as a local politician in Naga. More importantly, Jesse was perceived by Noynoy as being more loyal to his friend Mar Roxas than anybody else.
If you were in Noynoy's shoes, would you allow an agency as vital as the DILG to be controlled by someone whose loyalty belongs to another? But then again, Noynoy was in a bind. He had just been elected President and he had political debts to pay – and Mar Roxas was on top of the list (having “sacrificed” his personal ambition to give way to Noynoy's candidacy, which gained popular support after the latter's mother, former President Cory Aquino, died in 2009). Truly, Noynoy somehow felt he could not have become President if it weren’t for Mar’s sacrifice. So he had to compromise.
Yet as shrewd and manipulative as Mar was, Noynoy had other ideas in mind. He would agree to appoint Mar’s choice to the DILG post, but he would also appoint his own trusted bagman as Undersecretary to act as a counterweight (You know, just in case). Not only that, Jesse’s appointment would be on provisional status, and can be revoked anytime should he prove to be more of a liability than an asset. Jesse would be Secretary in title, but part of his executive functions would be given to another man – somebody Noynoy himself trusts, someone more reliable and less political, somebody to act as his “eyes and ears” – his close friend and erstwhile shooting-range buddy Rico E. Puno [FilipinoScribe].
Aquino swears in Jesse Robredo and Rico Puno as DILG Secretary and Undersecretary, 2010
To simply say that Puno was a shady character would be an understatement. The guy not only lacked the requisite credentials, he seemed to be a magnet of controversy as well. Suffice it to say that aside from being a member of Ochoa’s Samar faction, he also shared Aquino's penchant for guns, and seemed to enjoy Noynoy’s trust and confidence, and these were the only reasons he was awarded the job. Truth be told, given the choice between Jesse and Puno, Noynoy would have preferred Puno to head the agency, since the guy was under his direct control. But concessions were already made so he had no choice but to give in to Mar's request.
During the aftermath of the tragic Luneta Hostage Crisis which took place on August 23, 2010, Jesse was blamed for the incident. He had just been appointed DILG Secretary and thus had command responsibility over the PNP, but Jesse revealed that it was Puno who was ordered by President Aquino to manage the crisis, and that he was kept out of the loop the whole time. His friend Gabby Bordado would later tell the public that Jesse cried over the incident, and even thought about quitting [ABS].
Truly, Jesse got off to a rough start. After surviving the Manila Hostage Incident, he would quickly learn the ropes. He may have been treated as a stooge, but not for long.
As Secretary of the DILG, part of his executive functions was the oversight of the Philippine National Police (PNP) through the National Police Commission. The NAPOLCOM is the agency of the Philippine Government that exercises administrative control and operational supervision of the PNP [NAPOLCOM]. Yet Jesse was stripped of this power. In a 2015 article, Manila Standard columnist Rigoberto Tiglao wrote:
The DILG secretary’s main responsibility, as well as source of power, is theoretically his control over the PNP, which, with its 140,000 mostly armed personnel stationed in every corner of the archipelago, is the most powerful organization in the country. It is bigger than the 120,000-strong Armed Forces of the Philippines. This is through his designation, under Republic Act No. 6975 of 1990, as chairman of the National Police Commission, which is the body supervising the PNP.
Yet Aquino practically stripped Robredo of that power. The recent revelations on Puno’s supervision over the PNP’s questioned purchases of pistols and assault rifles confirmed that he had a tight hold over the police, cloaked by his designation as DILG 'undersecretary for peace and order.'
Even media seem to have forgotten that Robredo legally had authority over the PNP, with news reports occasionally in the past two years referring to Puno as the Napolcom chairman. Even the most visible member of the Napolcom has been its vice chairman and executive director Eduardo Escueta, formerly the chief of staff and favorite protegé of Senator Edgardo Angara. Imagine Robredo’s frustration as he suspected that his two deputies most probably got their marching orders from two other powerful figures [Tiglao].
While Mr. Tiglao’s observations may have been mostly correct, what is missing here is the fact that this curious set-up was caused mainly by the turf war between the two rival factions, and was the result of a compromise agreement that PNoy himself brokered in order to pacify the two warring camps. While it was clear as to which faction Puno and Escueta belonged to, Jesse himself had his own friends within the PNP. Atty. Luis Mario General, who was also from Naga City, was appointed NAPOLCOM Commissioner in 2008 upon the backing of a high-ranking Police Official who was close to Jesse Robredo. I will not dwell much on Atty. General, instead I will concentrate on this Senior Police Official who seemed to hold enough sway over the newly appointed DILG Chief.
CHAPTER 10: THE STRAIGHT PATH
Not a lot of people knew who Adit Rentoy was until the mid 2000's. The third in a brood of six, Tomas "Adit" Rentoy III was the son of a former policeman who would later become a teacher. According to a bio published in the Grand Lodge website [Grand], Rentoy started off as a utility man in the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court in Naga for four years in order to support himself in college.
Later, he would find himself entering the Philippine National Police Academy to become a policeman like his father. Adit would graduate and become part of the PNPA Magiting Class of 1983. He would work his way up the ranks until the 1990s, when he would hold several assignments at the PNP Finance Service. Due to this, he was admitted into the graduate program of the world renowned Asian Institute of Management.
Rentoy held various key positions as Police Superintendent in the mid 1990s. For several years, he acted as Regional Chief of the Comptrollership Division of the Police Regional Office 8 in Samar. He also served as Acting Regional Director of the PNP Regional Training School 5 in Legazpi City. In 2006, he was reassigned to the PNP Directorate for Comptrollership as Chief of the Budget Division and would later become its Executive Officer.
It was during this time that Adit would start making waves in Naga. From relative obscurity, he would suddenly become part of Naga City's A-List thanks to his powerful position and quite recent stature. At this time he was a Senior Superintendent (a police rank equivalent to a colonel in the military). Yet he was filthy rich - something a lot of people found quite surprising given his family's extremely modest background and his uninterrupted stint in the PNP.
Tomas "Adit" Rentoy III during his PNP days
The Rentoys are known Robredo supporters and fanatics, and a good number of family members were employed by City Hall. Like Adit, most of his brothers are in the police service. But their family was hardly affluent. Rentoy's mother, Minda (who passed away just recently), later became one of Jesse's secretaries at the City Mayor's Office, and was quite notorious among her peers for being an utangera (compulsive borrower).
So it really came as a surprise when all of a sudden, Adit comes back to his hometown all packed and loaded. Compared to Jesse, who was known as kuripot (tight-fisted), Adit was quite generous to a fault and certainly knew how to share his good fortune with other people, most notably his family and friends. Despite his new stature, Adit Rentoy was unassuming and extremely approachable. Young policemen and friends who were struggling financially only had to come to him for assistance and Adit would reach into his pocket and give them cash. Without hesitating, Adit would give them at least twenty thousand bucks or more depending on his mood. Adit tried to keep a low profile but he couldn't help being ostentatious as he was surrounded by people who all wanted a share of the loot. Suddenly, everybody in Naga wanted to be his friend.
Rentoy would purchase several prime properties all over the city and would build grandiose houses, apartment units, and provide businesses for his family, his mother and siblings. Even his stepchildren (the son and daughter of his second wife Nancy from her previous marriage) would enjoy the sudden perks of his new-found wealth. Nancy's son Nikko would set up a restaurant in Brgy. Peñafrancia called Jelatto (ironically located right across Isla Sison), and would lavish his friends with opulent treats like dinners and free travels. It was clear the restaurant was set up as a front. Not having any entrepreneurial background, Nikko was unable to manage it well so the business started to lose money. But it didn't matter. Adit needed to launder his money and justify the sudden wealth of his family. And what better way to do this than by setting up numerous business fronts?
An anonymous source, one of those close to the Rentoys, would tell us that each night Adit's children would host extravagant parties and invite friends to dine and drink for free, and Nikko would file receipts even if nobody paid. Despite losing money, Nikko would expand his business by setting up bars in the same compound called "The Tent" and later, "Nikko's Ark" - an unsightly structure fashioned like a cruise ship, which later became a hub for moneyed locals who wanted to purchase drugs but were afraid to enter Isla. Everybody in Naga knew that Rentoy's Jelatto restaurant never made any money, but curiously enough, it consistently ended up in the city's top 10 taxpayers [NagaGov].
LEFT: Adit with his wife Nancy RIGHT: Nikko's Ark, Naga City
The entrance to Isla Sison is right across Rentoy's property where Nikko's Ark is located
Adit's wife and all of his children would enjoy extravagant lifestyles and would buy properties and expensive vehicles left and right. Pretty soon, Adit had a rest house in Tagaytay, a luxury unit in BGC (in the same condo building where the late Chief Justice Renato Corona lived), and a string of mansions and real estate holdings in Naga and in other parts of the country. His son Russel, known amongst friends as Dadit, would go around gallivanting and playing golf, while his other kids splurged in senseless pursuits and languished in material excess.
Russel David "Dadit" Rentoy and his dad playing golf
Rentoy would use his wife, children, stepchildren, family, relatives and friends as dummies to conceal his wealth. One only needs to do a check on all the properties owned by his kin and wonder how in God's name they were able to acquire such. Much like Jesse did, Adit would use dummy bank accounts under the names of his trustees, where he would deposit millions and millions of ill-gotten cash.
His brother Bobot, also a policeman, was a known drug user and narco cop. Owing to Adit's growing power and influence over the city, Bobot's son Ray-An Cydrick would later be fielded as SK Chairman of Brgy. Calauag. With Mayor Jesse's blessing and his Uncle Adit's vast financial and logistical resources, Ray-An would eventually become Sangguniang Kabataan Federation President and ex-officio member of the city council [SPNaga].
Narco cop Bobot Rentoy with members of the Rentoy family
Dadit Rentoy (in the middle), Councilor Ray-An Rentoy (Far Right), Bobot Rentoy (Seated)
In 2010, Ray-An would officially join Jesse's line up and would be the youngest elected councilor at age 19. Ray-An can boast of absolutely no remarkable credential other than being the nephew of a corrupt police official and the son of a narc. His inclusion in the line up would be largely due to a deal brokered by Jesse Robredo with his Uncle Adit together with the latter's sizeable financial contribution to Jesse's party, the LP.
The 2010 Oath-Taking Ceremonies of Naga City Officials would include a known drug lord (Raoul Rosales, far left) and the son of a narco cop (Ray-An Rentoy, fifth from left)
In 2008, Adit got implicated in the controversial Euro Generals Scandal [Wiki]. A group of PNP generals and their wives headed by his boss Eliseo De la Paz got intercepted in an airport in Moscow for trying to smuggle out 105,000 euros (Php 6.9 million in cash). When the scandal broke out, Adit started looking for insurance. While he was not part of the official PNP contingent who went to Russia to attend the Interpol Assembly, he was tagged as being among those behind the illegal disbursement of more than Php 10 million in PNP confidential and intelligence funds. Colonel Rentoy and the other high-ranking PNP officials made a fortune during the term of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and now they were about to face graft and technical malversation charges for the screw-up. Adit needed to make sure he would survive the next six years under the new administration, so he invested heavily on the Liberal Party through his friend Jesse Robredo. According to a trusted source, Rentoy and his friends would likewise spend more than 50 million pesos to pay for a total news blackout. Mainstream media suddenly fell silent on the scandals that Rentoy and company were involved in.
The 2008 Euro Generals Scandal
Noynoy Aquino swept the 2010 Presidential election under the "Daang Matuwid (Straight Path)" campaign slogan, vowing to eradicate corruption and go after thieving officials who enriched themselves during the previous administration. Yet instead of sending the likes of Tomas Rentoy III to jail, the Aquino government promotes Adit to the star rank of Chief Superintendent in 2010. He was the first in his class to get such a promotion [GMA].
From a crooked Police Colonel during President GMA's term, Adit becomes a one-star General during the first year of Noynoy's term. Upon whose recommendation? DILG Secretary and Napolcom Chair Jesse Robredo and PNP Chief Director General Jesus Versoza [PDI]. Quite incongruous when back in 2008, Jesse's Kaya Natin Movement issued a statement strongly condemning the PNP for "lack of accountability," saying the police officials' involvement in the Euro Generals Scandal has resulted to the PNP's eroding credibility [GMA]. Openly, Jesse was condemning corruption. Surreptitiously, he was rewarding it.
One of Rentoy's close friends would tell us that Adit was angling to become mayor of Naga upon his retirement from the PNP and was stealthily courting Jesse's blessing. Jesse Robredo, on the other hand, realized that he needed Adit's clout with the PNP. Adit was a freemason and was highly influential in the PNP top brass so together, the two of them would strike a deal. Jesse's unexpected demise in 2012 put an end to Adit's political ambitions. Without Jesse, even money cannot guarantee his victory.
As a result, the political dynamics in Naga City would change as well. Mayor John Bongat, who had a falling out with Jesse prior to the latter's demise, was reined in by LP. Jesse was trying to control Bongat during his incumbency, just as he did with his previous surrogate Cho Roco. In late 2011, Jesse even made an announcement during an LP meeting in Camarines Norte that he was ready to replace Bongat in the coming election. Jesse was fielding his wife Leni to run for mayor in 2013. Bongat, who was only in his first term as mayor, knew this - having learned from Roco's experience - so he braced himself for an inevitable face-off with the Robredos. Jesse's death proved to be a stroke of luck for Bongat. Leni had to run for Congress, and the LP convinced Bongat to stay on as party member, realizing that they cannot afford to let go of Naga as a political bailiwick. Bongat went virtually unopposed, and would stay on as Naga City mayor for the next two terms. His relationship with the Robredos however, would never be the same.
But things would not be over for Rentoy. In the final two years of his service in the PNP, he would be assigned as Chief of the PNP Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies (SOSIA), the office that supervises all security agencies in the country.
Years later in 2015, Adit would once again find himself embroiled in another scandal - the questionable AK-47 Arms Deal, where more than a thousand high-powered AK-47 and Armalite rifles ended up in the hands of the communist New People's Army [Inq]. The case is still pending as of this writing. Rentoy would then use his power and resources to become President of the PNP Academy Alumni Association and Grand Master of the powerful and highly influential association of Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines, succeeding former PNP Director General Alan Purisima, who was the previous Grand Master in 2014. He would serve from 2015 to 2016 and was succeeded by Former DND Secretary Voltaire Gazmin [Grand].
CHAPTER 11: ALL ABOUT 2016
Despite denials from both camps, the growing animosity between Balay and Samar pretty much dictated the flow of the continuing power struggle within the DILG during Jesse's stint as Secretary. In fact, this power struggle would last the greater part of PNoy's presidency.
Jesse's appointment was a mere political accommodation. Noynoy might have considered his call to divide the powers of the DILG between Jesse and Puno as some kind of a Solomonic judgment in order to appease both camps, but it only resulted in further division and chaos.
Noynoy's original group were the ones running Samar. The Aquinos and the Ochoas go way back. Noynoy's father Ninoy was a very close friend of Jojo Ochoa's father, who was a mayor of Pulilan town in Bulacan. The Balay, mostly LP members, were simply 'new arrivals,' and got close to Noynoy only because of their political affiliation. But it was clear that between the two, Noynoy trusted the Samar group more than Balay.
In the beginning though, there was only one Balay where Mar Roxas and his LP cohorts were calling the shots. In his own blog site, Quezon-based lawyer Sonny Pulgar would write about the birth of the Samar bloc:
"There was one encounter where Ochoa stubbornly refused to modify his presidential candidate’s itineraries to accommodate his running mate Roxas where Mar in a moment of pique was heard saying, 'kung napapa-ikot mo si Sonny Belmonte dito sa Quezon City, ibahin mo ako.' Roxas, undoubtedly buoyed by unshakeable survey ratings, felt he had the right to steer the campaign at his discretion. Ochoa and his Ateneo crew resented the imposition. The latter chose to abandon their station in Balay and set up a ragtag headquarters in Samar Avenue. Ochoa’s brother-in-law Jerry Acuzar plunked in his initial investment of P30M. Thus started the independence of Paquito Ochoa Jr. [SonnyPulgar]"
As far as the two factions were concerned, their underlying motivations were quite apparent. Between the two, Balay was a bit more complicated. Of course, Balay was all about politics, power and 2016, but it cannot be ignored that those closely aligned with it were a bunch of greedy bastards as well. Samar was much more rudimentary. For Ochoa and company, with the exception of the politicians in the group, it was purely business.
A confidential government source would tell us, "Kung mapapansin nyo yung Balay yun yung grupong nainvolve dun sa mga mabibigat at maanomalyang transactions gaya nung DAP, Yolanda funds at MRT scandal. Sila Ochoa ng Samar naman tahimik. Pero sila naman yung nanginabang dun sa mga maanomalya subalit low key na PNP contracts, protection sa illegal gambling at drugs (If you will notice, it is the Balay camp that got involved with the high-profile anomalous transactions like the DAP, Yolanda funds and the MRT scandal. Ochoa and the Samar faction were the silent ones. But it was Samar who clearly benefited from the equally anomalous yet low-key deals like the controversial PNP contracts, illegal gambling and drug protection)."
It was obvious Mar Roxas was calling the shots in the Balay camp. Balay was named after Roxas' house in Cubao - the Araneta Residence dubbed as the "White House (Balay is Visayan for 'House')," which became the Liberal Party's headquarters. Several juicy cabinet posts were snagged by Balay. Butch Abad got the DBM post, Edwin Lacierda was Palace Spokesperson, Butch's daughter Julia Abad headed the PMS (Presidential Management Staff), Dinky Soliman was appointed to the DSWD, Leila de Lima got the justice portfolio, LP member Procy Alcala became Agriculture Secretary, Cesar Purisima got the Finance post, Gregory Domingo took Trade, Ging Deles was appointed Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, and of course Jesse, who was given an ad interim appointment to head the DILG. Other notable persons aligned with Balay were LP stalwarts Frank Drilon, Kiko Pangilinan and Joseph Emil Abaya, Egay Erice, Erin Tañada, Neric Acosta, Chito Gascon, AKBAYAN members Ronald Llamas, Risa Hontiveros and Ibarra Gutierrez, and later appointees Abigail Valte and Ricky Carandang.
Those closely identified with Samar were Executive Secretary Jojo Ochoa, DILG Undersecretary Rico Puno, PCOO Head Sonny Coloma, DND Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Senators Chiz Escudero and Serge Osmeña, and of course VP Binay himself. Samar got its name from the old house along Samar Avenue in South Triangle, Quezon City owned by Ochoa's brother-in-law, construction magnate Jose "Jerry" Acuzar, where they held camp during much of the campaign. Acuzar is the husband of Ochoa's sister Tess, and was one of the major donors in Noynoy's campaign. Noynoy's first cousin Maria Montelibano, his uncle Peping Cojuangco and other less prominent players were also identified with the Samar camp [GMA]. Speaker Feliciano Belmonte was an LP stalwart but was reportedly close to Samar due to Ochoa. Ochoa used to be Belmonte's city administrator when he was mayor of Quezon City.
LEFT: Roxas' house in Cubao dubbed as "Balay" RIGHT: Ochoa and company's headquarters in Samar Avenue
The rest of the Cabinet appointees who came from the private sector like Jose Rene Almendras (DOE then later Cab Sec and DFA) and Rogelio "Babes" Singson (DPWH) were quite apolitical and preferred to stay above the fray.
There were no clear lines that delineated these two factions. They were generally civil with each other and did not flaunt their animosity towards one another. Contrary to common perception, Noynoy was very much in control, and did not mince words with any of his cabinet members if they came to meetings unprepared. He showed no compunction berating anyone if he is not pleased.
"Everybody was cautious in front of the President," the source would say. "It was a silent war. Nobody flaunted it."
Even within Balay, it was mostly Roxas' inner circle who would snipe at those they perceive to be close to Binay. The rest simply went with the flow. In truth, the Noy-Bi thing was Chiz Escudero's sole initiative, and was silently backed by the other Noynoy supporters who were not comfortable with Mar. Even Noynoy's sisters were said to have been pro-Binay.
Chiz did so for self-serving political reasons. When Danding Cojuangco refused to support his presidential bid in 2010 [GMA], Chiz left NPC and found that he had nowhere else to go. Erap (former President Joseph Estrada) already chose Binay to be his running mate so Chiz had no choice but to sit this one out. Chiz instead set his eyes on 2016, and supported Binay in anticipation of a Binay-Escudero tandem for 2016. So he openly campaigned for Noynoy and Binay. A good number of Noynoy followers found the pairing to be palatable, so they went with Noy-Bi. It pretty much sealed Binay's come from behind victory. Mar never knew what hit him until it was all over.
The cold war that went on between Balay and Samar was fueled by 2016. Six years before the next presidential election, it was already Mar vs. Binay.
Perhaps the most glaring proof that the Balay camp was strongly fixated in securing their political hold in preparation for 2016 was the creation of the controversial DAP or Disbursement Acceleration Program [PhilStar]. Shocked to discover that Binay was extremely popular among the LGU's, Roxas and company created and engineered the DAP in order to effectively counter Binay's grassroots popularity. So what they did was they allocated 6.5 billion from the DAP fund for what was essentially a pork barrel scheme - practically a giveaway for local governments down to the municipal level. This was called the LGU Support Fund.
According to an investigative report by Bobby Tiglao:
"The fund was disguised as something intended to augment the internal revenue allotments of provincial and municipal governments which had fallen because of national government shortfalls in its revenues. The annual budget approved by Congress actually has a regular allocation for the LGU Support Fund of Php 200 million."
"How much did Aquino allocate from the DAP? A total of Php 6.5 billion, disbursed practically at the discretion of Abad and DILG Secretary Mar Roxas, who not coincidentally still believes he will be the Liberal Party's candidate for President in 2016."
"What indicates an anomalous irregularity though, is that the COA's audit reports of the DILG for 2011 and 2012 do not contain any reference at all to this P6.5 billion LGU Support Fund coming from the DAP."
"The only reference to DAP funds was in the 2012 audit which reported that out of the P1 billion given to the so-called 'Performance Challenge Fund' for local governments - in essence another form of pork barrel, disguised as awards for good governance by an LGU - P253 million came from the DBM's 'Disbursement Acceleration Fund.'"
"According to Abad's memorandum to Mr Aquino dated on October 12, 2011 which in effect set up the DAP after the President's signed approval, other projects it would fund would be 'DPWH: Various Infrastructure Projects' for P5.5 billion and 'Other local projects' for P6.5 billion."
"Since it would be entirely at Abad and Aquino's discretion what these "other projects" would be, the funds obviously could be used as bribes for political leaders in whose district or area these will be implemented [MT]."
In short, they were setting up the fund to boost their prospects in 2016, when Mar would run for President under the LP, and Jesse was his "bastonero" (executioner) so to speak. So when Jesse died unexpectedly, Mar had no choice but to take his place in the DILG. Who else can they trust to effectively handle and execute everything they prepared for?
Then all of a sudden Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) came, and they got more funds than they could have possibly imagined to add to their election war chest (Php 90 billion in Yolanda Rehab Funds went missing) [PhilStar]. Were it not for Senator Jinggoy Estrada's exposé that the senators were bribed Php 50 million each to convict Chief Justice Renato Corona [PhilStar], we wouldn't even learn about the existence of the DAP fund, which was obviously being used to bolster their political chances. And due to the scrapping of the PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) brought about by the exposition of Janet Napoles' Pork Barrel Scam [Inq], the DAP simply became the new PDAF. The Supreme Court would later declare the DAP unconstitutional, while partially granting the government's motion for reconsideration [PhilStar]. The issue contributed to a significant drop in the Aquino administration's satisfaction ratings, with critics claiming it to be the executive's version of Congress' "pork barrel" funds.
If Jesse wasn't involved, how come he never raised a howl about the DAP when he was the DILG Secretary? It was his agency that was being used as the conduit for the LGU Support Fund. More than 6 billion pesos in bribe money intended for the LGU's [CebuDailyNews] [DILG:YouTube].
Jesse was an integral part of the Balay syndicate. And the reason why he was put there even if Noynoy hated his guts for making him come back to Bicol repeatedly in 2010 (apparently a self-serving move in Jesse's part), was to make sure Mar wins in 2016. There is even good reason to suppose that Mar was grooming Jesse to be his potential running mate in 2016.
Now why was Leni silent about all these anomalies during the past administration?
Her husband Jesse was at the center of these anomalies, together with Abad, Ochoa, PNoy and Mar. His sudden and unexpected death in 2012 brought the LP into panic mode and caused the party to reorganize.
In 2011, Jesse would put his minions in strategic positions within the Aquino administration. Atty. James Jacob, a former Naga City Councilor and Camarines Sur Congressman who had a predilection for smoking weed (marijuana) - something that his friend and former law partner Carlos A. Cortes, Jr. confirmed in a recent Facebook post - was appointed head of the LTFRB (Land Transportation Franchise and Regulatory Board) [VoxBicol], while CPA/lawyer Salvador "Buddy" Del Castillo, another former City Councilor, was appointed Executive Director of the DOF's Bureau of Local Government Finance - a rather low key yet strategic position that could prove very useful to their political plans [VoxBicol].
LEFT: Former LTFRB Chair Jaime Jacob RIGHT: Former DOF-BLGF Executive Director Salvador Del Castillo
A screenshot of former Naga City prosecutor Caloy Cortes' Facebook post confirming his former law partners' penchant for drugs. In fairness to Atty. Jacob though, he only seems to be addicted to marijuana (Mary Jane, according to Caloy), and not shabu. But it is still illegal nevertheless, and is particularly troubling given that he was a high-ranking public official. Actor Mark Anthony Fernandez got nabbed for carrying marijuana, so Atty. Jacob should not be exempted. Jesse knew all these, yet he tolerated his minions in exchange for their loyalty. Prior to his stint as LTFRB chair, James Jacob served one term as Congressman of the Second District of Camarines Sur from 1998-2001.
When Jesse died, Mar Roxas put Jesse's daughter Aika in the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) under Jun Abaya. Mar, who was then DOTC Secretary, would later replace Jesse in the DILG, so he taps his lackey Abaya to succeed him in the DOTC. Abaya was directly under Mar's control, so all the anomalies in the DOTC can be directly traced to Mar since all these agencies were used for the same purpose - to milk the government coffers dry so that Mar's group would be well funded come 2016 [ManilaStandard]. With Jesse's passing, Mar needed to maintain his hold over the Robredos. Jesse knew too much and Mar wasn't sure if Jesse mentioned some of what they were doing to his wife and daughters, so Mar decided to keep the Robredos under close watch by bringing in Aika Robredo to the DOTC while Leni was in Congress. Even without Jesse, the Robredos were kept on a tight leash by Balay.
Later, Aika would join the Office of Civil Defense of the DND until 2016, when she resigned to join her mother's Vice-Presidential campaign [Wiki]. Strangely, Aika's stint in the DOTC was expunged from her CV, and no longer appears in her Wikipedia profile. This is perhaps due to the numerous scandals in the agency during Abaya's tenure.
CHAPTER 12: TURF WAR
The DILG was an extremely crucial agency and there was much at stake for Mar and company - exactly the reason why Mar vouched hard for Jesse's appointment. Yet Puno and Ochoa's camp beat them to the draw. Now the peculiar arrangement within the DILG (wherein Jesse had very little control over the police, and Puno was treating his turf as his own kingdom) irked Jesse more than anything else. Jesse definitely knew what Puno was up to. Puno was literally PNoy's own bagman, and he reported directly to Ochoa. Not only was Jesse bypassed by Puno, he was practically treated like shit.
Jueteng was rampant during that time, and both factions had their own interests as far as the illegal numbers game was concerned [DangerSigns]. Don't tell us Jesse knew nothing about it and played blind while Puno and company were making a lot of money protecting the jueteng lords [PhilStar]. Jesse himself was on the take, but Puno's group was the one getting the bigger piece of the action. Jesse's group in the Balay camp had its own share of high-ranking PNP officials who acted as jueteng protectors. These PNP officials were directly under Roxas' watch, among them Marcelo Garbo, Joel Pagdilao, and Edgardo Tinio, who would also be later revealed as narco-generals [Inq].
Back in 2012, according to Senator Panfilo Lacson, the daily take from jueteng amounted to 50 million pesos [PDI]. Lacson said a regional director of the Philippine National Police, who protects operators of the illegal numbers racket, could receive somewhere between 2 million and 3 million pesos a month, while a PNP provincial director could get between Php 500,000 and Php 1.5 million a month. For all we know, these estimates could be highly conservative. Now imagine how much goes to the people on top of the whole structure: the PNP Director General, the NAPOLCOM, the DILG USec, the DILG Secretary, Mar's group, the Executive Secretary, the President himself. We have a trusted asset who claims to know a jueteng bagman based in Tondo who can testify that he personally delivered jueteng payola to Jesse. But it was said that if, for instance, Jesse got Php 1 million a day, Puno would get twice or thrice that amount. And he would remit the payola directly to Ochoa, who was in charge of taking care of PNoy's dirty laundry.
To give you an idea of the daily take from the illegal numbers game, here's a leaked partial list of people involved in jueteng circa 2005: List (Source: Confidential).
Jesse would likewise be getting jueteng payola from Alex Tang, a big jueteng lord based in Camarines Norte province. Tang is Jesse's cousin-in-law (the first-degree cousin of his wife Leni) and was already notorious during President Arroyo's time. Alex Tang was on the NBI watch list together with his administrator Art Katigbak for his jueteng activities [PilipinoStar], but he started expanding his operations in Bicol when Jesse got appointed to the DILG. Alex is the older brother of former Dipolog City Mayor Evelyn Tang-Uy and was Meridien/Atong Ang's point man in Camarines Norte. He is also the go between of big-time financiers in the distribution of jueteng payola to police officials and politicians in the entire Bicol region. In a TV interview with Daniel Razon [YouTube:GetItStraight], Jesse admits knowing Alex Tang, and even mentioned that it was Tang who represented Ang's Meridien when the latter tried to penetrate Naga. But he curiously fails to mention the fact that Tang is related to his wife.
Behind the scenes as usual would be the infamous Charlie "Atong" Ang, who was using DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo to 'discredit' jueteng by floating a list of alleged jueteng lords and their protectors. Ang, who used to be a business associate of Jesse's older brother Butch Robredo, was using Jesse to forward his candy-coated STL (Small-Town Lottery) Proposal. It was the same thing though. STL was nothing but a mere legal cover for jueteng [Remate].
Police intelligence officials said that in Cavite alone, Atong Ang reportedly collects P2 million daily but only half a million goes to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. Ang would use the same skimming-off-the-top method in Cagayan, Camarines Norte, some parts of Luzon and in Mindanao. He was reportedly rewarded with an STL license by the PCSO after he was pardoned and was able to thrive with his jueteng-cum-STL operations using former President Arroyo as his connection. Other gambling lords, like Bong Pineda and the Singsons of Ilocos Sur, strongly resisted Atong Ang's STL scheme. That’s why Pampanga and Bulacan remained the exclusive turf of the Pinedas [Remate].
In September 2010, Jesse announced that the PNP would launch a one-strike policy against jueteng [PhilStar]. He would claim that STL had a flaw, that it was destined to fail against jueteng, but vowed that he would submit the proposal to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) to encourage the public to bet more on STL.
What a lot of people didn't know, however, was that Atong Ang was pulling Jesse's strings, using the latter to discredit his rival jueteng operators and forward his STL proposal. If he succeeds, then all operations would be under his control. Meridien Vista Gaming Corp., a company that was behind jai alai operations based at the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, was Ang's legal front.
Aside from the financial incentive he was getting from Ang, Jesse saw this as an opportunity to get back at Puno, and used retired Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz, a known anti-jueteng advocate, to float Puno's involvement in the illegal numbers game. Cruz came out with an exposé and Jesse announced to the press that he had a long list of jueteng lords and alleged protectors that "needed to be verified [ABS]." The list reportedly included Puno and PNP Director General Jesus Versoza as among the high-ranking government officials who were protecting jueteng lords.
Versoza was also targeted by Jesse upon learning that the former was being eyed by Noynoy as his replacement to the DILG [GlobalBalita]. Apparently, Noynoy was only waiting for Versoza to retire before he could make the announcement. After Cruz's exposé, Puno was forced to admit that he had received offers from jueteng lords, but claimed that he "turned them down." Versoza's involvement also compromised his looming appointment. It was true that Puno and Versoza were on the take, hell even Jesse himself was, but Jesse shrewdly used the jueteng issue and Cruz's exposé as a rare opportunity to target Puno and Versoza. Jesse was getting smart and was busy digging up Puno's dirt and dangled the "list"along with other incriminating stuff in order to blackmail Puno's camp and force them to make concessions.
FIRST PIC: Known gambling personality Charlie "Atong" Ang SECOND PIC: Anti-Jueteng Advocate Oscar Cruz with DILG USec for Peace and Order Rico Puno during a 2010 Senate Inquiry on Jueteng
Another big jueteng lord based in the Quezon province who maintains Laguna as his center of operations is Don Ramon Preza - the incumbent mayor of Tiaong town, who is a member of the Liberal party. Preza is protected by former Laguna Rep. Danilo Fernandez, who is Mar Roxas's guy [Rappler].
In Tiaong, Preza resides in a huge 4-storey complex that also serves as his depository for jueteng collections. Since jueteng caters to the hoi polloi (common people), collections would often times come in coins and small denominations. Preza's staff would simply sort all the money and weigh the coins before packing them up in boxes and containers to be picked up later by armored cars. Ambulances and pickup trucks would be seen delivering the collections on a daily basis. The daily take amounted to several millions, and due to this set-up, his headquarters was basically one giant alkansya (piggybank). Preza hired a crook lawyer, Atty. Antonio Silang [TiaongGov], to oversee his finances and numerous investments. Silang would be under the municipal government's payroll, but would hold office in a small nondescript facility across the Tiaong Municipal Town Hall where he regularly monitors the daily jueteng take. Preza would purchase numerous real estate properties all over the country in order to convert his cash into hard assets. Silang took care of this, a confidential asset told us, but was too busy skimming his boss either by negotiated overpricing or by demanding cuts and concessions from seller-landowners.
Preza's depository in Tiaong
Dan Fernandez would be in charge of political protection. In 2010, Fernandez, who was then a congressman in Laguna, demanded an investigation of Preza’s alleged failure to remit correct revenues to the PCSO, which manages STL [WowLaguna]. This was a strategy employed by Fernandez to harass Preza into submission. Now, Fernandez enjoys a substantial monthly payola from Preza and would go around in a convoy with no less than 15 armed police bodyguards. Even his mistress, a former beauty queen and Miss World Philippines title holder [WTM:YouTube], would go around town in a similar convoy.
To legitimize his operations, Don Ramon would also buy franchises of the government-sanctioned STL through his own legal front, Ramloid Gaming Corp. This practice of using the STL as a front for jueteng is quite common among big time jueteng operators [PhilStar]. Ramloid would hold the exclusive STL franchise in Laguna, while the STL franchise in the entire Quezon province would be held by Doña Rosario "Charing" Lee Magbuhos' Pirouette Gaming Corp. Magbuhos' administrator Eddie Gonzales aka "Kabayo" would manage Pirouette in behalf of Doña Charing. With STL now serving as a legal front for jueteng, the collectors of these jueteng operators would even brandish ID's identifying themselves as legitimate STL collectors in order to avoid arrest.
Senator Lacson would lament that in some cases, it is the arresting officer who is charged in court for harassing suspected jueteng employees.
Preza claims to have sold his shares in Ramloid when he entered politics in 2011, saying he only remains as a "consultant [PDI]." But everyone knows this is pure hokey.
LEFT: Tiaong Mayor Don Ramon Preza in a photo op session with LP Senator Ralph Recto RIGHT: Former Laguna Rep. and now Sta. Rosa Mayor Dan Fernandez seen in photo with one of his bodyguards
LEFT: STL as jueteng front RIGHT: Doña Charing Magbuhos
The group of LP Congressman dubbed as "Mga Anak ni Mar (Children of Mar):" Rep. Tawe Billones, Former Rep. and now Sta. Rosa Mayor Dan Fernandez, Rep. Egay Erice, Former Akbayan Rep. Barry Gutierrez, Rep. Bolet Banal, Rep. Kit Belmonte, Rep. Alfred Vargas, Rep. XJ Romualdo, Rep. Dax Cua.
In 2013, a group led by bookie and jueteng operator Victorino "Vic" Siman, Jr. was ambushed in a police and military checkpoint along Maharlika Highway in Atimonan, Quezon [Inq] [ABS:YouTube]. According to a well placed source who is part of Preza's organization, Siman's group was allegedly sanctioned and unleashed by Ochoa's camp to invade Preza's territory in Laguna. Siman's group was allegedly the same people responsible for a failed ambush attempt that Preza survived back in 2011 [PhilStar]. And that Preza simply retaliated.
It was a turf war all along. Siman and company were being protected by Ochoa (as evidenced by an Office of the President sticker in Siman's windshield the day he was ambushed), while Preza, protected by Dan Fernandez who was aligned with the Roxas camp, was complaining about Siman's encroachment in his territory. Preza was religiously giving payola to the Malacañang people, but Ochoa's camp was screwing him in the ass by allowing Siman to invade his turf.
According to an NDFP report, "Siman ultimately gained dominant control of jueteng operations in Southern Luzon through his network of politicians and police and military officials who frequented his Pink Star nightclub and resort in Calamba, Laguna. He was killed together with a police superintendent, two other police officers, two Air Force elements in active service and several relatives and friends. They were reportedly transporting Php 100 million when they were ambushed [NDFP]."
When Supt. Hansel Marantan, the cop who led the ambush against Siman, asked Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa for operational clearance (Ochoa being the head of the newly organized Presidential Anti-Crime Task Force), Ochoa rejected the op (codenamed Coplan Armado) upon realizing that the target was Vic Siman [Inq]. However, an intel report published by the Communist aligned National Democratic Front about the incident said: "In a shrewd bid to steer Malacañang clear of any controversy that may ensue, the PAOCC officially did not provide additional funds for the project, but neither did it give the thumbs-down to it as a PNP case plan at the regional level." Ochoa knew that the Siman affair was bloody business, so he played safe and decided to keep his hands off it.
Ochoa's subtle rejection did not stop Marantan from carrying out the op. Marantan is a notorious police officer with links to jueteng and carnapping operations. He has been involved in at least three other rubout incidents since 2005 that have resulted in the killing of at least 40 suspected criminal elements. Marantan was a mason and asked the help of his fellow masons, PSupt. Ramon Balauag (Chief of Intelligence of Quezon PNP) and Lt. Col. Monico Abang of the Special Forces Battalion of the Philippine Army. Marantan also sought the blessing of Senior Supt. Valeriano De Leon, Quezon Province Police Director. Later it turned out that Marantan was the brother of Cenan "Tita" Dinglasan, who headed an upstart criminal syndicate that operates the government’s Small Town Lottery (STL) outlets in Laguna, which was the turf of Don Ramon Preza. [SonnyPulgar] [NDFP].
LEFT: Murdered Bookie and Jueteng Operator Vic Siman RIGHT: Supt. Hansel Marantan
A tried and tested survivor (Preza managed to shoot back at his assassins in 2011, and miraculously survived despite being in critical condition), Don Ramon also had connections within the Samar faction. NAPOLCOM Vice-Chair Eduardo Escueta was Preza's wedding godfather. He also regularly name drops Noynoy's sisters, Pinky Aquino-Abellada and Ballsy Aquino-Cruz, as well as Atty. Hizon Arago, the father of former Laguna 3rd District Rep. and LP member Ivy Arago [GlobalBalita].
Killings were rife. All because of money.
FIRST PIC: Office of the President Sticker found in Siman's windshield the day he was ambushed SECOND PIC: Jueteng operator Vic Siman's SUV ambushed in Atimonan in 2013
In Naga, jueteng would continue to thrive long after Jesse's death. Proof of this is in 2015 when a number of jueteng collectors were arrested in Naga [BicolStandard]. One of the very few covered by local media. And it wasn't even picked up by the national press.
What's interesting is that these kubradors were caught and arrested in the house of barangay chairman Joshua "Kid" Calleja.
And who in heaven's name is Kid?
Kid happens to be the barangay chairman in Dayangdang, where Jesse and Leni Robredo lived. Talk about shit in your backyard.
The Robredo residence in Bulusan Street, Barangay Dayangdang, Naga City, just a few meters away from Kid Calleja's house where the jueteng collectors were raided. Jesse deliberately instructed his contractor to keep the building exterior simple, in keeping with his 'brand.' Even the first floor receiving area was kept simple, but Leni reportedly had the second and third levels improved according to her taste and standards, the contractor said.
How can Leni Robredo continue to claim that jueteng does not exist in Naga and that her husband stopped jueteng there when her first cousin Alex Tang is a big-time jueteng lord in the Bicol region and was giving payola to Jesse in behalf of Atong Ang? How can she deny jueteng when these operators were caught inside the house of the chairman in her own barangay who also happens to be their political ally?
Calleja expressed dismay over the arrest of the suspects and even claimed that the collectors were merely remitting the proceeds of a legitimate bingo game. The news article provided a list of those caught and a good number of them are residents of Barangays Pacol and Carolina, the home turf of Eddie Mercado and Ka Enciong Ona, cronies of the late Jesse Robredo who enjoyed the latter's protection. For years, much of the bolahan (raffle) would take place in Carolina and Pacol which are upland barangays controlled by the Mercados. If the heat was intense, these raffles would be moved to the city's fringes - in adjacent municipalities like Bombon, Pili, Camaligan, Milaor and Minalabac [NagaGov]. However, kubradors or bet collectors, under instruction by their gambling operators, would continue to roam the city to solicit bets from Naga residents.
In 2016, Leni Robredo and Mar Roxas would court the support of the Pinedas of Pampanga [Rappler], and it is clear that it is not only the Pinedas' political support they were after. Jueteng lords are a good and reliable source of campaign funds during election season.
It is also ironic that back in 2013, Lilia Pineda ran against then LP bet Ed Panlilio, Jesse's co-founder in the Kaya Natin Movement, who lost by a landslide.
FIRST PIC: Dayangdang Brgy Chairman Kid Calleja (holding plaque) gets the Outstanding Sangguniang Barangay Award from the city government in 2015, the same year authorities raided his house. Leni (at the back) was present during the awarding ceremonies. SECOND PIC: Mar-Leni gets the support of Governor Lilia Pineda in Pampanga in 2016.
CHAPTER 13: NARCO CITY, NARCO STATE
When it came to drugs, it was the same scenario. There was an internal struggle as to who would get the bigger slice of the pie. The drug industry has proven to be a very lucrative business. According to a classified PDEA report that was submitted to Malacañang back in 2013, the illegal drug trade of the country's biggest drug syndicate, the Binondo Drug Organization, amounted to roughly 200 billion pesos annually [ManilaTimes]. And this was just one organization.
Like jueteng, drug lords won't thrive unless they get some kind of protection from government and law enforcement agencies. And since the Philippine National Police is the lead organization handling the government's campaign against illegal drugs, the DILG is the top agency most likely to benefit from the protection of drug lords.
Jesse is no stranger when it comes to narco-politics. His brother Butch (Jose Robredo, Jr.) is Naga City's biggest drug personality. This, despite Butch having Retinitis Pigmentosa - an inherited, degenerative eye disease that causes severe vision impairment. Ever since Jesse became mayor of Naga up until his appointment to the DILG in 2010, Butch was the city's drug kingpin, and was part of the notorious 4B's - so named after the nicknames of the four most prominent drug personalities in the city. Among the 4B's would be Butch himself, Provincial Prosecutor Fiel "Buboy" Rosales, Top Robredo contractor Bong Del Castillo, and Sigfredo "Boboy" Obias.
Obias was caught in 2008 during a raid of the "biggest shabu lab" in Naga City [ABS] and has been incarcerated ever since. Rosales would "surrender" in late 2016 after learning that his name was included in President Duterte's narco list, while Bong Del Castillo (the husband of Leni Robredo's bag lady Judy Cheng Del Castillo and the son of former Naga City mayor Carlos "Lut" Del Castillo) would lay low and drop off the radar when Oplan Tokhang was intensified in 2016.
FIRST PIC: Bong Del Castillo with his wife Judy SECOND PIC: Provincial Fiscal Fiel "Buboy" Rosales (in black shirt) during his "surrender" to the NBI in 2016.
Butch Robredo would conduct his drug operations using a business front selling Ukay-Ukay (second hand/pre-used) garments. His base would be an inconspicuous location along the PNR Road in Brgy. Tabuco (near the train station), where his family lived. Butch is also tied up with the Chinglo Drug Syndicate and was responsible for allowing the group to operate in Naga City for more than ten years without restraint. Notorious drug personalities in Sagrada Familia (Isla Sison) like Tawing Arbuis and Nono Rapal [BicolStandard] would likewise be under Butch's protection. The Ukay-Ukay was also a convenient means of smuggling the drugs in and out of Naga.
Jose "Butch" Robredo, Jr., Jesse's older brother, who happens to be the city's biggest drug personality
Butch may be visually impaired, but like his father Tio Peping (Jose Sr.) who also suffers from the same disease [Inq], Butch is extremely sharp and functional. He had a way of accurately counting money that baffles a lot of observers. He would "feel" the bills with his own hands and never needed any assistance from people around him. He goes around with an aide, but generally functions normally as if without impairment.
Butch with her sister-in-law, Vice-President Leni Robredo
The Robredo siblings (from left to right): Jeanne Robredo-Tang, Jocelyn Robredo-Austria, Jose "Butch" Robredo Jr., Jesse Robredo, Penny Robredo-Bundoc
Butch's involvement in drugs is an open secret in Naga. He thrived because of his brother's immense power and influence. He would host pot sessions in Brgy. Tabuco with his friends (According to his pals, Butch is an expert in serving meth/shabu), and would manage and facilitate most of the city's illegal rackets - including the smuggling of counterfeit goods and the protection of illegal and undocumented Chinese immigrants, another lucrative business he shared with fellow Chinese businessman Fidel "Totoy" Cu.
In exchange of hefty sums and monthly payolas, these Chinese immigrants would be given business permits and would be allowed to operate large retail businesses in the city, selling smuggled and mostly counterfeit goods at rock bottom prices. These undocumented Chinese immigrants who can barely speak any foreign language would "marry" local citizens, mostly impoverished salesladies, who would act as legitimate fronts in exchange of incentives.
A sample of these establishments would be the immensely popular Hong Enterprises along Padian Street, located in a commercial building owned by Cu himself. Hong is extremely popular because it sold consumer goods at unbelievably low prices [YouTube]. A local Chinese businessman even observed that a lot of the garments and goods were being sold at prices lower than in mainland China, where all of these goods came from. What people are unaware of is that a lot of these goods are practically giveaways. The shipment of drugs and other smuggled contraband is coursed through these consumer goods being sold in established fronts like Hong.
LEFT: Fidel "Totoy" Cu RIGHT: Hong Enterprises, Naga City
Totoy Cu is Jesse's crony and dummy and owed his notoriety among the local business community due to syndicated estafa cases brought about by the closure of his ill-fated Golden Seven (G7) Bank [ABS]. Cu also owned the posh Avenue Plaza Hotel and Avenue Square in Naga City [CMRecto]. Avenue Plaza Hotel is where Leni and her crew would frequent when she became Vice-President in 2016. Everytime she's in Naga, she no longer stays in her house in Dayangdang and prefers to be taken directly to Avenue Plaza Hotel, where, together with her previously mustachioed paramour, a certain congressman from Quezon City, she is treated opulently like a queen.
Avenue Plaza Hotel and Avenue Square in Naga City, both owned by Robredo dummy and crony Fidel Cu
FIRST PIC: Leni's entourage gathered for dinner at Avenue Plaza Hotel, March 2017. A permanent fixture in her entourage would be QC Rep. Bolet Banal and her baglady Judy Cheng Del-Castillo (First and Second from Right) SECOND PIC: Judy (First from Left) and Bolet (Standing) at APH, January 2017 THIRD PIC: Leni, Bolet and Rep.
Alfred Vargas at Avenue Plaza Hotel, 2014
Avenue Plaza Hotel's well-appointed amenities
Chinglo Rosales would continue evading authorities and would only be caught in April 29, 2015, three years after Jesse's passing. He was arrested in his house in Brgy. Balatas after nine years of evading capture. The arrest was made by members of the Philippine National Police's Intelligence Branch, led by PCInsp. Benito C. Dipad, Jr. and personnel from Police Station No 2, under the direct supervision of PSSupt. Narciso Damaso Domingo, Officer-in-Charge of the Naga City Police Office [BicolStandard].
Druglord Victor Lorenzo "Chinglo" Rosales, April 2015 mugshots
Atty. Ricardo "Ric" Diaz, then National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Regional Director in Bicol, recalled that in 2006 he initiated surveillance operations against "well-known but untouchable drug personalities in Naga City." Diaz recalled he got the help of NBI Intel Service in Manila to do the surveillance and application of search warrant against Rosales in RTC Manila in order to "avoid leakage."
"We raided Chinglo's house and found shabu but he was not there. He was able to evade arrest, but we filed cases anyway," Diaz said.
He revealed that after the surveillance operation and raid and the filing of cases against Rosales, "there was strong pressure to remove him in Bicol."
"They were successful that I was unceremoniously returned to Manila," Diaz said about his transfer back to the NBI Central Office in Manila after serving six months as Regional Director in Bicol. In 2015, Diaz, then assigned as NBI Director in Cebu, commended the police officers who initiated the arrest of Rosales after years of eluding authorities. To this day, Chinglo is detained at the Naga City District Jail in Brgy. Del Rosario, Naga City.
What is curious about Diaz is that despite being aware of Chinglo's connections with the Robredos - Chinglo's brother Raoul aka Jackpot was a Naga City Councilor who presided over the Naga City Dangerous Drugs Board during his term [NagaGov] - and despite making the above claim in a local news report published after Chinglo's arrest, he still remained a close Robredo ally. Diaz was among those who openly supported Leni Robredo's candidacy for Vice-President in 2016. The following screenshots show that both Diaz and Raoul Rosales remain Facebook friends with Leni up to this day:
Even more surprising is the sudden disappearance of the Bicol Mail article that featured Diaz' interview. A click of the link [BicolMail] will show that the article has been taken down by Bicol Mail right after the publication of Deception 1, along with several other links we used as sources. Bicol Mail's present owner E. Daniel "Danny" Aureus De Leon is a known Robredo supporter and crony, while Joe Perez, who is part of the original PR team of Jesse Robredo, is the paper's Editor-in-Chief [BicolMail]. Despite their efforts to scrub the article, we were still able to recover the cached page. Here is the link of the cached archive if you want to view the original piece (you have to copy paste the link for it to work) - http://web.archive.org/web/20150717052428/http://www.bicolmail.com/2012/?p=20778.
Danny De Leon (in the middle) with friends
Screenshot of the website owner's Contact Info and Leni Robredo's FB friends list showing Danny De Leon's profile
Perhaps due to his connections with some people close to President Duterte, Ric Diaz got appointed as the new NBI NCR Regional Director in September 5, 2016 [BicolStandard]. Not surprisingly, when Provincial Prosecutor Fiel "Buboy" Rosales got wind of his name's inclusion in President Duterte's narco list in 2016, Rosales chose to surrender to his friend and fellow Robredo ally Ric Diaz in Metro Manila. He was accompanied by his close friend and former law partner Carlos "Caloy" Cortes, Jr., another close Robredo ally who was appointed City Prosecutor during Jesse's time in Naga. Caloy was Jesse's batch mate at the Ateneo de Naga (High School Class of 1974).
Before his "surrender," Rosales reportedly went out of the country immediately after Duterte's victory in an apparent attempt to avoid arrest and prosecution and was likewise said to have underwent rehab. Upon Diaz' appointment as NBI NCR Regional Director in September, Fiel Rosales comes back to the country and 'arranges' for his surrender. Right now, Rosales is back to his post as Provincial Prosecutor but is reportedly "under observation." Meanwhile, Cortes claims to be a Duterte supporter, while at the same time coddles a known high profile drug lord who happens to be his friend, and even facilitates Fiel's "surrender" to another Pro-Leni Duterte appointee. Instead of being prosecuted for his drug activities, Rosales is back to his job as provincial prosecutor. The government is even paying for this guy's salary. I'll leave it to you to draw your own conclusions.
In February 2017, Atty. Diaz gets implicated in the abduction and killing of Korean businessman Jee Ick Joo which led to the suspension of Tokhang Operations and paved the way for a nationwide cleansing of the PNP [ABS]. The Department of Justice (DOJ) orders the relief of Diaz and several other NBI personnel.
FIRST PIC: NBI NCR Regional Director Ric Diaz SECOND PIC: Prosecutor Fiel Rosales (at far right) surrenders to Atty Diaz in Metro Manila accompanied by his friend and former law partner Caloy Cortes (at far left)
In May 2015, the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Naga passed a resolution commending the PNP for Chinglo's arrest [SPNaga]. What hypocrisy when Chinglo's brother Jackpot was a City Councilor during the previous term and was their political ally. Remember that in Naga Ubos kung Ubos continued up to the last election and all members of the Sanggunian belonged to Robredo's party, the LP. Why didn't anyone object when Jackpot became the Presiding Officer of the Naga City Dangerous Drugs Board [BikolNews]? Why the sudden turnaround?
Upon Jesse's demise, Jackpot mysteriously withdrew from public service and did not seek reelection in 2013. Without political protection, it became difficult for the Rosales brothers to keep up with their business. They persisted but struggled to keep things in order, and everything ended with Chinglo's capture in 2015. Just like his cousin Fiel, Jackpot reportedly flew to the United States when President Duterte won in 2016. Butch Robredo also chose to lie low until his once-booming narco business eventually dissipated. Even his Ukay-Ukay business which served as his front would sooner or later shut down. Duterte's victory made it even more impossible for Butch's empire to reclaim its old glory.
"Humina negosyo. Hindi na kagaya ng dati (Business slowed down. It was never the same)," an underground drug informant says. Things were different when Jesse was around. "Para silang mga hari (They lived like kings)."
Jesse's passing marked the end of an era in Naga narco-politics. Yet drugs continued to proliferate in the city, especially in Isla Sison where pushers, addicts and all sorts of criminals thrived [GMA:YouTube]. Even Jeffrey Moralde, the Barangay Chairman in Peñafrancia [Wiki], where Isla Sison is located, is a known drug user and protector. He also belonged to Jesse Robredo's political party, along with several other officials in other barangays. No wonder drugs continued to flood Isla. The barangay chairman himself is involved. Just like Councilor Jackpot in the NCDDB, Moralde is a classic example of what we Filipinos consider "Bantay Salakay (a colloquial term for Inside Man)."
President Duterte's election in 2016 paved the way for the cleansing of Naga City's known drug dens. Even before he assumed office, drug pushers in Naga were already scrambling for cover [ABS:YouTube]. His intensified campaign to rid the country of illegal drugs resulted in incessant raids and police operations that effectively rid the city of drugs [BicolStandard] [GMA:YouTube].
Now, Naga City has become a much safer place. And it took Rodrigo Duterte five months what the Robredos failed to do in over three decades of running the city. But then again, why would they eradicate drugs if it's their bread and butter?
Images taken from a 2016 drug raid at Sagrada Familia (Isla Sison) in Naga City
CHAPTER 14: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
In 2016, rumors also started circulating that Jesse's death may have been the result of foul play due to another "list" he allegedly submitted to President Aquino containing the names of drug personalities including that of Joel Pagdilao, one of the narco-generals identified by President Duterte during the onset of his anti-drug campaign.
In an Inquirer column dated August 25, 2016, journalist Ramon Tulfo claims to have been told by an "unimpeachable source" that Secretary Robredo had "warned" the President about the severity of the drug problem [Inq]. Robredo allegedly showed Aquino a list of government officials who served as protectors of drug lords but was told by Aquino to "keep it to himself."
"If only President B.S. Aquino III, a.k.a PNoy, paid close attention to the drug problem, it would not have reached pandemic proportions at this time, requiring his successor to take drastic action," Tulfo wrote.
While there is no clear evidence that a list exists or that one was shown by Robredo to Aquino as Tulfo alleged, it is plausible that Jesse may have established Puno's and Ochoa's links to big time drug syndicates and prepared another "file" that he could use as leverage. Exactly like the jueteng issue. Whatever the real situation was, Jesse was apparently busy investigating his undersecretary in order to pin down Puno and secure concessions for himself. Later investigations also revealed Puno's involvement in the anomalous procurement of firearms [ABS]. Jesse Robredo may have conducted these investigations on his own initiative or under Mar's direct instruction.
There exists two possibilities. One is that Jesse may have underestimated PNoy's involvement and that he may have shown the President the list in order to impress his boss and "expose" Puno's illicit activities, hoping that PNoy will realize that giving Puno those powers over the PNP was a momentary lapse in judgment.
Another possibility, and I submit that this is closer to the truth, is that Jesse may have known all along that the President was involved. So he used his "knowledge" of Puno's activities as leverage so he can keep his job and force the President's hand to get rid of Puno in order to get full control of the PNP, something he desperately needed to secure his party's interests as well as his own.
He was also using this knowledge as a bargaining chip to get himself a piece of the action. Jesse was a city mayor for 18 years and had a local overlord mentality. As the undisputed king of Naga, he was accustomed to getting the biggest slice of the pie, and earned a lot of money mostly through localized trading and protection - mainly through his brother Butch. When he became DILG Secretary, Jesse saw the bigger picture and wanted in on the action. He knew there was big money in drugs, but what he was getting in Naga was obviously small fry compared to what these pricks were earning. He was officially in the big leagues, yet he wasn't allowed to touch the big stuff. The shit was cordoned off. It was off limits.
According to a confidential government informant, "One has to look at this stuff in terms of the value chain. There's production, storage, transport and trading (through bulk or retail to end consumers). When he was mayor, he was involved only in the local level. Upon seeing the bigger picture, Jesse wanted to level up and was using his position and knowledge to get into the high value aspects of the drug business where big money came quick and easy. But this shit was complex and intricate, and was practically run by big-time syndicates associated with the Chinese Triads. How do you smuggle the chemicals into the country? How do they get through customs? How do you smuggle in the mules and the chemists who are most likely undocumented foreigners and get them through immigration? These needed protection from the highest levels. It was impossible for all these to have been allowed without government protection."
Jesse had enough knowledge to give him sufficient leverage. So he dangled what he knew.
Surely, what Jesse was doing was nothing short of blackmail. Of course Jesse wanted the big money, but in the interest of self-preservation, he also did what he had to in order to survive. Jesse was a consummate politician, and was schooled in the art of political survival - mentored mostly by his father Tio Peping, his uncle Luis Villafuerte, and his patron Fidel Ramos. Aquino was about to let him go. Time was of the essence, so Jesse had to act fast.
Yet Noynoy was also aware of Jesse's history and drug links. Surely, there is no trust among thieves. Aquino distrusted Jesse since day one and was completely aware of his duplicity and skullduggery - the reason why he wanted to get rid of Jesse from the get go. They were subliminally blackmailing each other in order to protect their own selfish interests.
President Aquino already wanted to get rid of Jesse sometime in October 2010 and was preparing to have him transferred to another post. After getting all the blame during the aftermath of the bungled Luneta Hostage Incident in August, Jesse did a Pontius Pilate. He washed his hands clean and revealed the bizarre arrangement within the DILG to the media. Suddenly, everybody knew that Puno was in charge of the PNP instead of Jesse.
In reality, Jesse wasn't completely out of the loop. Since he was the DILG Secretary, he had oversight functions during the hostage crisis, which explained his presence during the event. Puno, as Undersecretary for Peace and Order in charge of the PNP, may have been the Palace’s point man in the crisis management committee, but Aquino, being the President, had command responsibility over the whole incident. Yet instead of shielding his boss from public outrage over the handling of the crisis, Jesse chose to wash his hands clean and instead pinned the blame on Puno, knowing full well that doing so would backfire on his boss. In the end, Aquino was left with no choice but to take full responsibility for what happened [GMA].
Jesse was never a team player. His decision to exonerate himself from any responsibility and wrongdoing and his failure to "take one for the team" bothered the President. On the other hand, Noynoy knew that if the hostage negotiation proved successful, Jesse would have instantly taken credit. Add to this Jesse's posturing and subliminal maneuverings during September when the jueteng issue broke out and Noynoy was practically on the edge.
The Ill-fated Luneta Hostage Crisis in August 2010 which resulted in the death of eight hostages
On early November, Noynoy announced in a live TV interview that he was transferring Jesse to the still to be created Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor, saying he will not submit the names of Robredo and Paje (Acting DENR Secretary) for confirmation when the 15th Congress resumes session [ABS].
"Sa DILG naman po, baka imando natin sa iba pang ahensya kung saka-sakali. Wala pa pong planong maliwanag. Si Sec. Robredo maganda po ang ginagawang trabaho ngayon pero meron po tayong gustong i-fast track na mga programa tulad sa informal settlers na talagang expertise ho niya,” Aquino said.
“So baka magtayo tayo ng bagong grupo na talagang tutulong sa Presidential Commission on the Urban Poor at mga shelter agencies natin na mas focused and mas realizeable tulad noong sa Lupang Arenda, daang libo ang nasa danger.”
But less than 24 hours after that live interview, Noynoy retracts and issues a statement that “he (Jesse) will stay in his present position for the meantime. No plans of transferring him anywhere.”
In an opinion piece for GMA Online [GMA], columnist Ellen Tordesillas wrote:
Aquino several times expressed the desire to remove Robredo from the Department of Interior and Local Government. He had wanted the recently retired Philippine National Police Chief Jesus Verzosa for the position. Versoza as DILG chief with Rico E. Puno as undersecretary was Aquino’s dream team for the department that supervises local government and peace and order. By a strange twist of fate, the Aug. 23 hostage crisis happened. Plus the jueteng exposé of retired Archbishop Oscar Cruz that zeroed in on Puno and Versoza as the recipients of multi-million peso monthly payolas. When the Senate was conducting a hearing on jueteng, Aquino was in the United States. He was fed the information that Robredo had a hand in Bishop Cruz’ exposé. A source said Aquino was overheard saying that he would take Robredo out of the DILG when he returns to Manila. In his meeting with the members of the Incident Investigation Review Committee (IIRC) that investigated the August 23 hostage tragedy, he remarked that if Puno would be charged, Robredo should also be charged. The IIRC members were aghast because Aquino himself, in public statements, had cleared Robredo of responsibility in the hostage crisis because he had designated Puno in charge of the PNP. In the end, Puno was cleared. A source close to Robredo said his decision to stay on is a response to the appeal of several civil society groups whose frustration level with Aquino’s governance is increasing. It also has something to do with the battle of the “Balay” and “Samar” factions in the Aquino administration. Robredo belongs to the “Balay” group and they would not want to give control of the department that supervises local government to the other group.
Having triumphantly turned the tables against Puno and Samar, Jesse was able to keep his post despite Aquino's growing contempt and disgust. Jesse's well executed strategies proving successful, Noynoy was left with no choice but to retain Jesse and work with his appointed Interior Secretary. If he doesn't, all hell will break loose and they'd all end up exposing each other's dirty laundry.
Despite keeping appearances, Noynoy still despised Jesse's guts. In his mind, Jesse was a backstabbing, finger-pointing, blackmailing son of a whore. However, Jesse's masterful maneuvering somehow earned him a certain degree of respect from the President. All the subterfuge and machinations left Noynoy no choice but to set up a common ground with Jesse, and this common ground constituted an unwritten truce where one became tolerant of the other's behavior and activities. It all boiled down to what we call "territorial imperative," Robert Ardrey's groundbreaking work on the evolutionary determined instinct of humans and animals toward territoriality [Wiki]. Simply put, they all adopted a live and let live mentality in order to survive.
But still, Aquino did nothing to expedite Jesse's confirmation in the Commission on Appointments. In an ambush interview after Jesse's death, Senator Vicente Sotto, who chaired the Commission on Appointments (CA) during Aquino's time, said that the palace would not submit Jesse's name to the CA for confirmation until the middle of 2011 [GMA:YouTube].
When later asked for comment, Palace Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said: "We shouldn't be doing the blame game right now. This is a period of mourning, this is a period of remembering him, and I think hindi po tama sa oras, sa panahon na ito na yun po ang ating ifocus."
According to a GMA 7 news report, Jesse was bypassed thrice by the CA starting 2011.
CHAPTER 15: PRELUDE TO A DEMISE
It was only when Jesse felt that his position was secure that he was somehow able to perform his duties as he wished. For the next one and a half years, he would appear to have the President's "trust," albeit superficially. In spite of this 'territorial truce,' the animosity between him and Puno would never go away. And he would continue spying on Puno, collecting damning information that could later prove handy in case he needed it. Jesse was watching Puno like a hawk, and Noynoy was keeping close watch on Jesse.
Puno's weakness was that he underestimated Jesse. He may have thought that since he enjoyed the President's trust and confidence, he was virtually untouchable and that he can do as he pleased [GMA]. He may have one-upped Jesse when he was given the power to control the PNP, but Jesse outplayed him eventually by playing dumb while surreptitiously monitoring all his moves. It was Machiavellian politics at its finest. A real life Game of Thrones.
It would later be revealed some time after his death that Jesse was conducting an investigation on the procurement of high-powered rifles which again involved Puno, his favorite undersecretary.
ABS-CBN News was able to secure a copy of the official DILG report on the planned purchase of assault rifles by the PNP-SAF (Special Action Force) that involved two procurements of nearly Php 178 million and Php 213 million [ABS]. You may view the full document here.
The document shows that Jesse received a copy of the report on August 8, less than two weeks before the fatal plane crash off the coast of Masbate. It also shows that Puno traveled to Israel on May 10 upon the invitation of weapons manufacturer Israel Military Industries (IMI). It was the same date of the second pre-bid conference for the purchase of short firearms. Puno was accompanied by former Special Action Forces Chief Leocadio Santiago, Reynaldo Espineli - the owner of a defense and security company which was IMI's local partner [AFAD], and Puno's consultant, Ramiro Lopez III. It cites a possible conflict of interest since both Puno and Lopez were members of the bids and awards committee. Out of seven bidders, Espineli and IMI won the bid. The report also says specifications of the assault rifles seem to have been amended to favor IMI. Jesse initially sought a review of the price for the assault rifles, but while the bidding process was suspended, he still wanted to hold Puno and the other officials accountable for pushing through with the deal [ABS].
Excerpts of the confidential DILG memo dated August 8, 2012 that incriminates Rico Puno (credits: ABS-CBN)
Lopez is said to have been among those who accompanied Puno when the undersecretary went to Jesse's office at the NAPOLCOM on August 19, a day after the plane crash. Espineli's partner company IMI was reportedly blacklisted in India for corruption [ABS], while former SAF head P/Dir. Leocadio Santiago was a corrupt police official who was later alleged to have had extra-marital relations (in exchange for protection) with Ozamiz City Vice-Mayor Nova Princess Parojinog, who was also romantically linked to jailed drug lord Herbert Colangco [Inq]. Puno was hanging out with a bunch of unsavory characters, and Jesse was watching him like a rabid stalker. The controversial report was allegedly one of the sensitive documents that Puno and his company were looking for in Jesse's condo.
LEFT: Reynaldo Espineli RIGHT: Ret P/Dir Leocadio Santiago
But when immediately asked for comment, Malacañang refused to speak about the issue. Sources said the President also had a copy of the DILG report.
According to Ricky Carandang of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office: “What I can confirm is that before his death, Secretary Robredo was conducting a number of very sensitive investigations. But I will not comment on the specifics of what was being investigated or who. I think lalabas din yan.”
"I understand many of these investigations were done by Secretary Robredo on his own [ABS]," Carandang added.
Now since Malacañang never released an official statement addressing the issue, much has been left to speculation. What is clear is that despite Aquino's truce, Jesse Robredo continued digging into Puno's dirty linen. Since Jesse may have given a copy of the report to the President, it is also clear that Aquino is in on everything that was happening. Not only was he aware, he was complicit. Behind the scenes, Noynoy may even be pulling the strings. Remember that Puno was just a bagman. An appointed executioner. Whatever it was that Puno was doing, he did at somebody else's command. And it was clear whose instructions he was following. Save for Jesse himself, there was nobody else above Puno but Ochoa and PNoy.
The investigation that seemed to target Puno's involvement was classic Jesse Robredo. When he was mayor of Naga, he made sure that all deals and transactions go through him. He profited from every deal, and it didn't matter whether it was big or small.
INSATIABLE GREED
In 1998 when his term expired, Jesse picked Sulpicio "Cho" Roco, the brother of the late Senator Raul Roco to fill in his shoes for one term while he was banned from seeking reelection. Cho was the mayor, but Jesse owned the city council. All ten of them did nothing without Jesse's say so. It didn't come as a surprise that while Cho was officially the mayor of Naga, Jesse was the one in charge. In fact, Jesse had a desk inside City Hall during much of Cho Roco's term. It was only when Jesse took a sabbatical at Harvard that Cho was able to act quite freely.
It was during Cho Roco's incumbency that the Almedas, one of the old rich and landed families in Naga, offered to donate a whole stretch of their land for the construction of a four and a half kilometer bypass road that will later be known as the Almeda Highway [NagaCityJournal]. The original proposal was that the road to be built would contain four lanes. Upon hearing the proposal, Jesse ordered the city council to suspend the project and wait for his return to City Hall.
There was nothing that Cho Roco could do. He was a bench warmer. He may have been mayor in title, but Jesse was still the boss. In 2001, Jesse makes a mayoral comeback and fielded Cho to run for congressman in the second district of Camarines Sur. Both of them would win. Jesse then started talking to the Almedas. He demanded a concession that the project will push through only if the Almedas give him a portion of the land. What was initially a four-lane road project was eventually reduced to two lanes. The other two lanes went to him, awarded mostly through dummies.
The four and a half kilometer stretch Almeda Highway in Naga City
He did the same in the 1990s, when the city government acquired a 15 hectare property in the upland area of Pacol owned by Jose "Peping" Quezon for what was to become the Pacol Urban Poor Resettlement Site. He sought an overprice so that the difference will go to him. It was declared in the deed of sale that the price was Php 250 per sqm when in truth Jesse negotiated for it to be purchased at Php 150 per sqm. Not only did he get to pocket the Php 100 difference, he also asked Peping Quezon for several hectares to be given to him. Before Tio Peping died, he was cursing at Jesse Robredo for his "insatiable greed."
Another instance was the rehabilitation of the Naga City Public Market. When Cho Roco was mayor, the city council passed an ordinance for the upgrade of the Naga City Public Market with a budget of Php 50 million. When the project was finished, and Jesse was rearing for a comeback, Jesse grumbles that the budget was bloated even if the project was already completed by the contractor. He ordered the city council to withhold the release of payment to the contractor, Elizabeth Garcia, and wait until he returns as city mayor. Jesse fell silent and approved the release when Garcia gave him Php 2 million.
It happened again in the late 2000's when Jesse meddled in the SM City Naga land deal. The property that was being eyed by Henry Sy's SM group was owned by local Chinese businessman Romy Tan. Tan owned several prime commercial properties within the city, and was known for his pragmatic business sense.
The location of the property was perfect for SM. It was near the Central Business District and was situated right beside the Naga City Bus Terminal in Brgy. Triangulo. SM badly wanted to lease the property, so Romy Tan entrusts the deal to his aide, local businessman Atanacio "Jun" Pelagio.
Pelagio successfully brokered the deal so his boss gave him a commission of Php 10 million. Jesse hears the news and orders Pelagio to report to him. He scolds Pelagio for brokering the transaction without his knowledge. Furious and embarrassed, Jun Pelagio relays what happened to his boss.
Romy Tan, being the seasoned businessman, read between the lines and decides to give Php 10 million to Jesse.
In 2009, when SM City Naga officially opened, Jesse Robredo was nothing but all smiles.
LEFT: Former Naga City Mayor Cho Roco RIGHT: Businessman Atanacio "Jun" Pelagio
Not only was Jesse excessively greedy, he was also known to bamboozle and shortchange those who dealt with him. And it didn't matter if these were his friends. This happened to Julian "Jun" Lavadia, Jesse's close childhood friend who was a city councilor and a former barangay chairman in Tabuco, where Jesse grew up. Like many of Jesse's minions, Jun was struggling financially, and had to leave his rented house in Barangay Tabuco due to money problems.
Jun knew Jesse's modus, and an opportunity presented itself when Jun hears that City Hall was acquiring a parcel of land in Barangay Del Rosario in what was to be the Del Rosario Urban Poor Resettlement Area. Jun was not a councilor at that time. His term as barangay chairman has already expired so a new guy, Mari Mercado (Eddie Mercado's nephew from Pacol) sat in the city council as ABC chairman. He was fresh out of work and like his friend Gabby Bordado, he was struggling to make ends meet. He wanted badly to have his own house in a property he owned, so he asks his friend Jesse and volunteers to facilitate the deal. The only concession he asked was for Jesse to give him a portion of the property so he can finally build his own house.
Julian "Jun" Lavadia and Jesse go way back. They grew up in the same Barangay in Tabuco where their parents, both Chinese immigrants, lived. Jun would be Barangay Chairman in Tabuco and would later join the city council as ABC Chairman when Jesse was mayor. When Jesse's plane crashed in August 18, 2012, Leni would appoint him as the family spokesman, and was the one who took questions from the media [Rappler:YouTube].
Jesse agrees and instructs Jun to assign only the back portion of the said lot to the urban poor recipients. The front part of the property was to be divided between the two of them. It was a good location. The property was beside the main road going to Cararayan and was just a few meters away from the Spring Valley Resort, a well-known first class recreational facility in Naga. So Jun does exactly as he was told and seals the deal. When the time came for Jun to collect his rightful share, he goes to Jesse's house in Dayangdang. He was brimming with excitement. For Jun Lav, it was a dream come true. His very own house near a well-known summer retreat. His execution was flawless, and the urban poor didn't have a single clue what they were up to. It was perfect. They couldn't have planned it any better.
Jesse wasn't expecting him when he arrived. Jun was suave and was a smooth talking hustler. Unbeknownst to Jesse, Jun was expecting a bigger portion of the land as a reward for all his hard work. Besides, Jesse was already filthy rich. "What the fuck does he need a lot in far-flung Del Rosario for?" Jun thought. He was laying the predicate, and was blandishing Jesse with honeyed words while highlighting his accomplishments, when all of a sudden Jesse stands up and goes to his room. Jun paid no heed and thought perhaps that Jesse was simply going to take a piss. But then Jesse comes back a few minutes later and hands him a plastic bag full of money.
"What's this?" He asks his friend. "That's Two Hundred Thousand," Jesse replied without the slightest flinch. Jun swore he nearly had a stroke upon hearing those words. He was aware of Jesse's trickery. They were friends, they grew up together, and Gabby told him all about the trip to Hong Kong that Jesse gave him for engineering the Ramon Magsaysay Award. But in Jun's mind, Gabby was a loser. He was a weak, spineless twerp who pretty much got what he deserved. He was different. Him and Jesse go way back. Jesse would never do that to him.
Yet at that moment, Jun was in shock. He totally underestimated Jesse's avarice. He struggled with what to say next. "Dae man baga ni ang napag ulayan ta! ("This is not what we discussed!")," he exclaims.
"Maray ngani ta tinawan taka pa! ("You should be thankful I even gave you some!")," was Jesse's quick reply.
Jun knew all too well not to press his luck with Jesse. "Baka kwarta na maging bato pa," he thought. He restrained himself, took the bag, and then went home to get himself a well-deserved heart attack.
I swear I saw Jun's eyes welling with tears as he was telling this funny yet heartbreaking story. Jun was drunk as he narrated this tale to a group of friends, one of which was a potty-mouthed man of the cloth who had a penchant for booze. It was almost as if Jun was making a confession. First, Jun tells us about what happened to Gabby. Then he follows it up with his own personal experience. Everybody was in tears laughing as Jun himself desperately tried to hide his heartache and pain. It was obvious he despised Jesse for what he did to him. But there was nothing he could do about it. Jesse was Jesse. True enough, he was lucky he still got a couple of hundred grand. Gabby had it worse.
Much later, people at the Barangay Hall in Del Rosario would be surprised when a copy of the Tax Declaration of the said lot comes across their desk bearing Jesse's name as the owner. Here are screenshots of the said Notice of Assessment and Tax Declaration:
There are countless other stories that one will hear in Naga about Jesse's mercenary tactics. What he was doing to Puno and his equally corrupt allies was nothing new, especially if you ask Nagueños - particularly those who did business with him. It was a classic shakedown. Jesse Robredo style. For all his greed and avarice, Jesse could have bit more than he can chew. He may have overreached his boundaries and might have gone a bit too far. He may even have messed with the wrong people.
In reality, he was just sending a message to Puno. He was the DILG Secretary and these fuckers are making a lot of money under his very nose. No fucking way he'll simply allow that to happen without demanding his share.
Jesse was just being himself. All he wanted was to squeeze some money from the rival camp. He was trying to corner Puno and Espineli in order to force them into offering a concession. However, Jesse seemed to have forgotten that he was no longer in Naga. He was used to bullying people around and harassing them in order to get what he wanted. Instead of resorting to artful diplomacy as gentleman gangsters should, he chose to shake them down. For all he knew, his insatiable greed might have precipitated his own downfall.
CHAPTER 16: THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL
In the early morning of August 18, 2012, Jesse knew he had a big day ahead of him. He was flying to Cebu to attend two events: the groundbreaking of the Philippine Police Safety College in Consolacion town, and the national summit of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group – Community Investigative Support (CIDG-CIS) in Mandaue City where he was delivering a keynote speech [PhilStar].
It was President Aquino who was originally invited by CIDG chief Gen. Samuel Pagdilao, but since the President couldn't make it, Jesse was asked to deliver the speech in his stead. Gen. Pagdilao is the older brother of Joel Pagdilao, who would later join DILG USec Rico Puno in the attempted 'raid' of Jesse's condo unit in Quezon City the day after the crash. Samuel Pagdilao also invited Rico Puno to attend the event, since Puno was the Undersecretary in charge of Peace and Order and was the one directly supervising the PNP.
Despite his hectic schedule, Jesse knew he had to fly back to Naga the same day. He was talking to his wife Leni early in the morning and their youngest daughter Jillian was competing in some sort of swimming event. It was a Saturday, and Jesse made it a habit to come home to Naga every weekend to spend time with his family [Rappler].
At around 11:45 am, Jesse arrives in Cebu with his aide de camp Police Senior Inspector June Paolo Abrazado. He goes to Consolacion town to attend the groundbreaking ceremony, then proceeded to the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) to deliver the keynote address. There he meets General Pagdilao and his USec Rico Puno.
Jesse delivers a speech at the CIDG-CIS National Convention in Cebu on August 18, 2012. General Samuel Pagdilao, who heads the CIDG-CIS, awards him a token after the speech (Photo Credits: Cebu Daily News).
Jesse and his aide are supposed to take the 3:50 pm flight to Manila via Cebu Pacific. But for an unknown reason, Jesse decides to cancel his previous booking and leaves Cebu via a private plane chartered from the Lapu-Lapu City-based Aviatour Air. The plane, a twin-engine, 6-seater Piper Seneca with Registry No. RPC 4431, carried 4 persons on board: the pilot-owner Capt. Jessup Bahinting, Nepalese co-pilot Kshitiz Chand, Jesse Robredo, and his aide June Abrazado. They took off at 3:06 PM.
LEFT: Aviatour's Capt. Jessup Bahinting RIGHT: Nepalese Co-Pilot Chand
At around 3:30, June Abrazado alerts an aviation official about a problem with one of the plane's propellers, and told him that the plane was returning back to Cebu. Abrazado sends the alert through a text message to Col. Ritchie Posadas, chief of the Police Center for Aviation Security-7 [GMA:YouTube]. He then requests a rebooking for his boss and himself for the earliest possible flight out of Mactan. They are booked for a Cebu-Manila flight via Cebu Pacific that was supposed to leave at 5:05 pm.
At exactly 4:20 PM, Abrazado informs PCAS-7 and DILG personnel about a plan to make an emergency landing at the Masbate airport. When asked about their condition, Abrazado replies, "Okay naman (We're okay)." That was June Abrazado's last communication with PCAS-7. A few minutes later, Captain Bahinting sends a message informing the Mactan control tower that the aircraft is already at 150 feet, descending on the final approach. He also indicated that they might undershoot the runway. This was the last message the control tower received from the doomed plane. At 4:30 PM Leni receives a call from Jesse informing her about the situation. The call is suddenly cut off.
At 5:00 p.m., the plane crashes off the shore of Masbate, about 200 meters from the shoreline. An hour later, the Search and Rescue Operations begin.
LEFT: The Ill-fated Piper Seneca Aircraft (Source: CAAP) RIGHT: The Masbate Crash Site
This was the official timeline of the events that took place as detailed by Jesse's close friend, then DOTC Sec. Mar Roxas [PhilStar].
THE BLACK BAG
Fisherman Joseph Belda was at sea with his young son when he saw the plane flying low overhead. He noticed that one of the propellers wasn't functioning and that the plane was wobbling and made a slight turn before it fell crashing into the sea. Upon hitting the water, the plane broke apart. He goes straight to the crash site.
Suddenly, somebody pops out of the water. He is holding on to a black bag. It was June Abrazado, Jesse Robredo's aide. Not having the slightest idea who he is, Belda fishes him out of the water and hauls him into his boat. The plane disappears from view a few moments later.
In a TV interview with GMA 7 [GMA:YouTube], Belda recounted exactly how he witnessed the crash and rescued Abrazado from the sea. According to him, Abrazado was hurt as his face showed visible injuries. Abrazado was conscious. He held on to his backpack as he floated in the ocean.
I was watching the news with some friends the day Jesse's plane crashed and I swear I saw a news footage from ABS-CBN where Belda describes in detail how he saw Abrazado floating at sea with his bag and that the bag seemed heavier than Abrazado when he pulled him out of the water.
This particularly curious detail would disappear from later news reports.
Which leads one to ask: Why was it removed from the succeeding news coverage? What could have been inside the bag that Abrazado decided to cling to it as if his whole life depended on it? Okay, so he might have used it as some kind of a floating device, but how did he manage to get out of the plane with that bag instead of rescuing his boss Jesse? It would have been ridiculous to assume that he carried that bag on his back for the entire duration of the flight.
A lot of us did see that interview where Belda spoke of the bag which was later extinguished from all accounts after the news blackout. But before you accuse us of concocting this, we scrounged the web for anything that could possibly corroborate what we saw. The ABS-CBN news footage was gone, but we were lucky enough to find a post made by a netizen in a Disqus thread five years ago which confirms this. Following is a screen cap of a comment made by a certain Liza Santamaria (Here is the link of the complete thread):
Upon impact, Abrazado claims to have temporarily lost consciousness. He wakes up a few minutes later and swims out of the plane with a heavy backpack in tow. Surely, there were life vests underneath the seats. It was a matter of life and death, and as he faced the moment of truth, June Abrazado decided to grab the bag instead of a life vest. Something strange is going on in here. Something just doesn't add up.
When they arrived in Cebu that morning it wasn't clear whether or not Police Senior Inspector Abrazado was carrying a backpack with him. Upon checking all the footage, it was clear that by the time they left the convention center, June Abrazado was carrying two bags and the large plaque given to his boss as a token by Gen. Samuel Pagdilao. Let me repeat. He was carrying two bags. A black sling bag that looked like a laptop case, and a black bag he wore on his back. Here are pictures of June Abrazado with his boss Jesse as they were leaving the venue. Inset photo also shows the sling bag after it was recovered from the crash site:
Jesse had no plans of staying overnight in Cebu. He was supposed to deliver a speech and catch the commercial flight back to Manila that was scheduled to leave at 3:50 PM. Yet for some strange and unknown reason Jesse decides to cancel his booked commercial flight and charters a private plane instead. What could have drove him to suddenly change flight plans?
Jesse and June's previously booked Cebu Pacific flight tickets
Then came rumors that Jesse collected money during the event. These rumors were already circulating behind the the scenes, prompted by Belda's earlier testimony. There was also a buzz going around among the locals in Masbate allegedly due to some paper bills floating in the ocean when the plane crashed.
Out of curiosity, I asked my guys at Team Collective to dig into all available footage taken during the event and see if we can get another view of the backpack from a different angle. This is what we found:
Jesse Robredo in the escalator with his aide June Abrazado and General Samuel Pagdilao as they were on their way to the convention center. From this angle, it isn't clear whether Abrazado was carrying the sling bag. Jesse wasn't carrying anything. The plaque would be given to Jesse much later after he delivers the speech. Yet it is clear from these stills that June Abrazado's backpack was quite full. Somebody must have given Abrazado the backpack or Abrazado might have put something in it that seemed to carry some weight.
Okay. So it's pretty unusual for a close-in security aide to be carrying a large, conspicuous backpack in such an event. Could it have contained important documents? His service firearm? His personal belongings? Why was he carrying it with him inside the convention center during the event? Whatever it was inside the bag, it must have been too important not to be left in the car or simply deposited in the reception area for safekeeping. What could possibly explain Abrazado's attachment to the backpack? Why hold on to it if it wasn't important? If the backpack simply contained other objects like clothing or some mundane stuff, why did Abrazado cling to it as if his life depended on it? The natural instinct is to cut yourself loose from anything that can pull you down. Abrazado definitely knew how to swim. That's part of his training. How can he do that with such a heavy load? If you're facing life and death and all hell is breaking loose, would you grab a heavy bag if it will hamper your mobility? Unless the bag contained a life vest which was never the case. And why was there a news blackout immediately after the crash? Why was Belda's initial testimony about the bag scrubbed from later news reports? Why was June Abrazado prohibited from talking to the press?
All the circumstantial evidence points to one thing: The bag could have contained something extremely valuable. Now if Jesse did indeed collect money, what was it for? Could it have been drug money, jueteng payola? Then it suddenly hit us.
Rico E. Puno was in Cebu during the event. Jesse was investigating Puno just weeks earlier over the rigged firearms procurement deal and he was trying to squeeze Puno and Espineli by using his findings as leverage. He even submitted a copy of his report to the President. So the President was completely aware of what Jesse was doing. Puno was just a bagman. Whatever he did, he wouldn't have done it without the blessing of his superiors. And save from Jesse Robredo, there was no one else above Rico Puno but Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa and the President himself. Noynoy and Ochoa may not have been named in the report but Jesse knew they were in on it. Jesse knew they were pulling the strings.
A still shot of a video footage taken during the event shows that Puno was there with Robredo and Pagdilao
So Jesse decides to shake them down. Noynoy and his Samar cohorts including Espineli had no choice but to give in to Jesse's demands. They understood Jesse's message. They read between the lines.
SHAKEDOWN
It was the logical thing to do. It was already a done deal. The winning bidder, R. Espineli and IMI already gave earnest money to Puno and even took him to Israel with Lopez and Santiago. Jesse's investigation was gonna screw up the deal. Even worse, Jesse leaked the investigation to the media, effectively compromising the transaction. Not only did they have to take care of Jesse, they needed to contain media as well.
Despite belated claims on the contrary [GovPH], Noynoy never really instructed Jesse to conduct an investigation. Why the hell would he do that when he was masterminding the whole thing from the start? If he really did instruct Jesse to stop the bidding and to investigate the procurement process of the firearms, why were there no cases filed against Puno? And why did he send Puno to secure Jesse's office and condo unit knowing it was Puno who was involved? Not only that, it also directly contradicted Secretary Carandang's earlier statement that Jesse did most of these investigations on his own [ABS]. Why did he not announce his order to investigate earlier? Why did he not order Puno's suspension if Puno was doing this on his own? Why was Puno acting as if he was untouchable, even attending the CIDG summit in Cebu, when there were already strong hints about his complicity to the anomalous deal? More so, why bother with an investigation when he could simply order Puno to scrap the deal and supervise the procurement himself?
Noynoy made this outrageous claim in a desperate attempt to protect Puno and himself. He hated taking responsibility for his screw ups [Collective], but in this case something had to be done in order to prevent the shit from hitting the fan. And the stench was already leading everyone to his doorstep. He had no choice but to let go of Puno. Puno may have been the scapegoat, but at least he was given a graceful exit. And Noynoy was able to save face. The outpouring of sympathy that came about as a result of the tragedy meant that Noynoy stood to lose a lot of political capital if people realize that he was behind the deal and that he was protecting Puno. It was the closest thing they could ever get to a win-win solution.
It was only on September 8, 2012, during the APEC Summit in Vladivostok, Russia, one day after Carandang's statement, that he would make this preposterous claim that the order to investigate came from him, saying the rifles were grossly overpriced [GMA]. A check with both the DILG and the Philippine National Police (PNP), which is under the DILG, revealed that officials had no information where the investigation led to [GMA]. The procurement would later be stopped and considered a failure, but no cases were filed against those involved. This was simply a case of containment. Abad, being one of Noynoy's chief political advisers [Rappler], may have counseled him not to push through with the deal. It was accursed. Pursuing it will only do him more harm than good. This explains Abad's strange and dubious presence in Masbate during the Search and Retrieval Op. He was PNoy's official troubleshooter.
So again, concessions were made. Roxas never made a fuss about the controversial procurement deal involving Puno when he assumed the DILG post on August 31, 2012. It was the same day the failure of bidding was announced [Rappler]. Balay was silent. Noynoy would simply say the order to investigate came from him, Puno resigns, Mar takes over as DILG chief, Abaya replaces him at the DOTC, Leni is told to shut up, end of discussion. Everything is swept under the rug.
Jesse did this on his own (or perhaps with Mar's blessing). And this is not the first time he did this either. He did this at least twice before since he got appointed as DILG Secretary. The first was during Oscar Cruz' jueteng exposé. Jesse was behind it and implicated Puno and Versoza as jueteng protectors as he tried to forward the STL proposal with Atong Ang's backing. He did it again with the alleged narco list. In both occasions he was reportedly told by Noynoy to "keep it to himself [TNP]."
Yet Jesse's apologists can claim that he was doing this because he only wanted to clean up the DILG. Now if Jesse was doing this out of his moral and patriotic duty to cleanse the agency, then why were his two previous investigations shelved? And why did he suddenly fall silent? If he was really going after Puno to expose corruption, surely, he should have continued with the investigation even if the President was against it. Whatever happened to his anti-jueteng crusade? His investigation of big-time drug lords and protectors? If push came to shove, he should have stood his ground and resigned from his position. That would have been the honorable thing to do.
Jesse had no interest in cleaning up the DILG. He simply used these as leverage in order to keep his post and squeeze the shit out of Samar.
Jesse had the goods on Puno and Co. He had 'em on a leash. So as much as they despise Jesse's extortionist tactics, they had no choice but to settle with him. And that is why Noynoy begged off at the last moment and decided to send Jesse in his stead. It was a deliberate call. Jesse was sent there by Noynoy because of the payoff, otherwise he could have simply ordered Puno to deliver the speech in his stead. Besides, it was Puno who was in charge of the PNP, not Jesse.
Puno, on the other hand, was cautious. To avoid any direct implication, Puno may have given the money to Jesse through his cohort, CIDG Chief Sammy Pagdilao. The Pagdilaos were Samar runners from the get go. Joel Pagdilao's appointment to various positions in the QCPD was largely due to Jojo Ochoa's influence - he used to be Quezon City Administrator before he became Executive Secretary. Samuel Pagdilao would later land a congressional seat through his partylist group, ACT-CIS (yes, that CIDG-CIS event in Cebu was all about landing Pagdilao a seat in Congress). ACT-CIS was a shoo-in since it was supported by a couple of highly influential religious organizations [Inq].
It was exactly as it was in the movies, where bags played an important role during payoffs. Jesse was smart enough not to leave any paper trail that could prove that he took money from Puno. He demanded that he be paid in cash. Which explains why his aide carried the bag all throughout the event up until their plane crashed into the sea. This also explains why Jesse brought only one security aide with him to Cebu. He was the Secretary of the DILG, and as a VIP, surely he had a full security detail assigned to protect him. This was official business. Why bring only one aide? And somebody from his hometown he knew he could trust. It makes no sense to assume that he did this in order to save government expenses. He chartered a whole plane instead of just taking the commercial flight which was way cheaper. Surely he was avoiding those X-Ray machines at the Cebu-Mactan Airport. He could not afford to let anyone blow his cover, let alone nosy airport personnel.
Given June Abrazado's training, he was certainly instructed to protect that bag at any cost. That's why the bag never left his side even as they boarded the plane. As the plane took a dive, Jesse may have ordered him to secure it. There is also the possibility that Abrazado saw an opportunity for himself when he survived the crash. If he was lucky enough to swim to shore, he can hide the bag and claim that it got buried under the sea along with the plane.
CAUTIOUS, SUSPICIOUS, SUPERSTITIOUS
Those who find it hard to believe that Jesse would personally prefer receiving cash rather than doing it through bank deposits and bank transfers truly do not know Jesse.
Jesse was an extremely cautious player. Not to mention inherently suspicious and superstitious when it comes to money dealings. That is also one of the reasons why the President distrusted him. Why Puno was put in the DILG alongside Jesse. Noynoy is aware of Jesse's character and shrewdness when it comes to money. He could never be a trusted bagman. At least Puno was.
On mid-September of 2012, Sen. Miriam Santiago grilled USec Rico Puno over the controversial arms deal and the jueteng issue but Puno never budged [ABS]. Even if you put his balls in a vise, the guy wouldn't sing. Puno is the type of guy who would rather jump off a cliff than be caught alive. He was incredibly loyal to a fault. He was the perfect soldier.
We have several insider accounts of Jesse personally receiving cash. One from a jueteng bagman who personally handed over payola to Jesse when he was DILG Secretary, the other, a longtime friend and confidante of Jesse who delivered money to him from contractors when he was still mayor of Naga.
He would go to Jesse's house in Dayangdang to deliver the cash.
Jesse wouldn't even touch the money. He would order the guy to put the money on top of the fridge.
Then they would leave the house together.
Jesse is traditional when it comes to money dealings. He'll never go through bank transactions especially if he distrusts the one he's dealing with. In some cases he would use trusted collectors, bagmen and dummies, like he did when he was squeezing the shit out of Camarines Norte Governor Edgardo "Egay" Tallado, his former LP partymate, who earned his notoriety due to a sex scandal with a mistress that went viral in 2014. Jesse was getting monthly payola from Tallado's illegal mining activities in Labo, Camarines Norte when he was DILG secretary [Inq], and would entrust the collection to his bagman, Naga City Vice Mayor Nelson Legacion. Otherwise, he will collect the money himself. That way it'll be easier to deny, more difficult to trace.
There was also a very big possibility that it was Puno's camp who insisted that Jesse himself should collect the payout. Jesse already had his weekend plans all mapped out. The Cebu event was a last-minute thing. That's why he was rushing to get back home after he made the speech and he's already done collecting the money. Puno's team also needed assurance that Jesse would drop the investigation after the settlement is made so they tried setting him up. Simply entrusting the payola to his aide or bagman can give Jesse plausible deniability. They can also use the exchange as counter leverage in case Jesse swindles them later or decides to extort more money. That way, they also had Jesse boxed in. They were fortunate enough that Jesse agreed. He was used to this practice that was nothing but a high ranking official's version of 'hulidap.'
To each his own, but Jesse would prefer it the old fashioned way.
So one really can't compare him to other operators who use checks, bank transfers or deposits, where paper trails can be established. This one he may have learned from the master. His sensei, former President Fidel V. Ramos, otherwise known as El Tabako.
El Tabako has perfected the art of stealing, cheating, bribing and plundering without getting caught. He is the gold standard that all budding thieves in all levels of power must aspire to. Clean as the Lord's resurrection, with absolutely no trace in sight.
LEFT: Robredo bagman Naga City Vice-Mayor Nelson Legacion. Legacion is one unbelievably greedy motherfucker. Even when Jesse was already dead he still went to Tallado in August 2012 to collect the month's payola. Perhaps Jesse made an apparition and spoke to him in a dream, ordering him to go to Tallado to keep collecting in his behalf, or he may have thought that Tallado's deal with his boss had no expiry, and that as Jesse's dummy/Attorney-In-Fact, he was personally entitled to get the payola even if Jesse was no longer around. In fairness to Legacion, Jesse may have been depriving him of his share and rightful compensation as bagman. He may have been bamboozled by his boss so he only pressed his rights. RIGHT: Camarines Norte Gov. Egay Tallado
This is why they all went into panic mode upon hearing that Jesse's plane crashed. Because they all knew money changed hands. And it was Puno who was last seen talking to Jesse before they left the venue [UNTV:YouTube]. This was also why Jesse preferred to change flight plans from commercial to chartered. And why Joel Pagdilao was involved in Samar's own Search and Retrieval Operation on a personal level.
It was a cleanup. Noynoy had to do damage control. Fast.
INSTRUCTED TO STAY PUT
Meanwhile in Naga, Leni was struggling to break the news to her two other daughters, Aika and Patricia, who were both in Manila. Upon hearing the news from a certain "Paul,"who was allegedly one of Jesse's security aides in Manila, Leni was 'in shock' so she decides to call up her brother-in-law Butch, who also happened to be in Manila, to make sure that Aika and Tricia were okay. Jillian was with Leni the whole time.
After calling two more family friends, Leni "prayed the rosary with Jillian"[Rappler] while city officials and supporters who heard the news started trooping en masse to their house in Dayangdang to hold a vigil for Jesse's safe return.
But what was startling was Leni's immediate reaction upon hearing that her husband's plane crashed.
Any normal wife would find a way to rush to the crash site immediately.
Yet why did Leni choose to stay in Naga?
She would stay there for three days and would never bother to fly to Masbate to look for Jesse.
Well, under the circumstances, it is most likely that Leni had been instructed to stay put.
To put things in proper perspective, everybody was in panic mode. Everyone was struggling to know more about the situation. As the news spread like wildfire especially in Naga, palace officials and Jesse's staff at the DILG started going to La Salle Greenhills where a vigil was held. Malacañang was desperately trying to control the situation as they began the Search and Rescue Operations that same evening in Masbate.
For all that has been kept from the public, Leni knew much about her husband's activities. She cannot play the innocent card. She was aware. And she was complicit.
How else can anybody explain and justify her immediate reaction to the terrible news? There was no serious effort on her part to fly to Masbate to look for her husband. She simply stayed in Naga and waited for updates and instructions.
She never even spoke to the press. Spokespersons were designated to speak on the family's behalf. Among these, Jesse's kababata (childhood friend), Julian "Jun" Lavadia [RaffyMagno:YouTube], and strangely enough, straight from Malacañang, former DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman, who were the ones giving updates to the press.
It was actually as if someone was instructing her, telling her what to do.
RED FLAGS
Now that it's getting clear what could have prompted June Abrazado to cling to the bag, there were several red flags that also caught our attention. First was Mar's statement in a television interview that a "friend" who was traveling to Naga offered a ride to Jesse, and Jesse took the offer since there were no direct flights from Cebu to Naga [Rappler:YouTube]. He had to take the ten hour car ride from Manila to Naga if he were to proceed with his previously booked commercial flight. Curiously enough, this particularly mystifying detail was again omitted from later interviews and news transcripts.
Who paid for the chartered flight? Did someone offer Jesse to hitch a plane ride to Naga? If this were true, then why is it that Jesse and his aide were the only passengers on board?
The original flight manifest as later discovered from the wreckage
Another peculiar detail is June Abrazado's communication with PCAS 7 as he reported what was happening inside the plane. He sends a text message to Col. Ritchie Posadas and asks him to book them a flight as they were returning to Cebu. Here's a screenshot of Abrazado's text message as shown by Posadas to the press:
What is perplexing was that Puno was monitoring Jesse's flight the whole time. Either Abrazado was texting him alongside PCAS 7 or Posadas was forwarding Abrazado's messages to Puno. When later interviewed by the press, Puno would admit that he was the last government official that Jesse talked to before he flew. He would also show media the text messages that he had been getting real time as the crisis unfolded. The UNTV news report mentioned that Puno got these messages directly from Abrazado. Again, here's a screenshot of those messages as shown by Puno to the press [UNTV:YouTube]:
Upon closer look at the text messages as shown in the news footage, it became clear that it was Posadas who was forwarding Abrazado's text messages to Puno, as evidenced by the caption FM SILG AIDE AT ABT 3:33 PM. Earlier messages were also sent to him informing him of PCAS 7's assistance to Jesse Robredo's retinue. Was this normal protocol? Or was something afoot?
Why was Puno monitoring Jesse's flight from the ground? Could there be an element of foul play involved?
NEWS BLACKOUT
June Abrazado would be forbidden from speaking to the press. Just a few minutes after the crash, he was immediately rescued by Belda about 0.5 nautical miles (.926 kilometer) off the Ibingay coast in Masbate. The crash happened near the shoreline, so Abrazado was instantly secured and given medical treatment. Abrazado never discussed the details of what happened to the people who covered the incident. There were no talks about the bag or what its contents were or why he salvaged it in spite of the circumstances. We are certain one of the first things the palace people did upon touchdown was to secure Abrazado's backpack. Jesse's sling bag. which may have contained his personal laptop as well as several documents, would be recovered and secured as well. It is not clear however, whether the sling bag was recovered immediately after the crash or during the underwater retrieval op. The reason why it took so long was that aside from retrieving the bodies, they were busy retrieving the bags and other items that might incriminate them.
Thirty minutes after the crash, the Philippine Coast Guard would conduct a joint Search and Rescue Operation together with the Masbate City Government and Provincial Police Office. Local fishermen joined in the search effort. At about 7:00 pm, they would recover the plane's fuel tank from the crash site. This is when talks of the floating cash started going around. Newsmen were still able to interview the locals until people from Malacañang came in and ordered a media blackout. From then on, media was kept at a distance and fed only with what Mar Roxas and Aquino wanted to give them.
At this exact moment, Mar Roxas became the only source of information and news about the ill-fated incident. He would act as the official palace mouthpiece and front-man in charge of providing details and updates to the press.
At around 11:00 PM, the Search and Rescue Op was suspended due to "strong waves."
Yet Malacañang was busy doing containment. A major cover-up was in the offing. They started with Abrazado and Belda, then went on to silence the press and the locals.
CHAPTER 17: COVER UP OF THE DECADE
After news of the fatal crash broke out, high-ranking palace officials swarmed into Masbate like a plague.
Noynoy flew in to Masbate early in the morning of August 19 with Transport Secretary Mar Roxas and DND Chief Voltaire Gazmin. LP stalwarts Butch Abad and Jun Abaya were part of his entourage. He visits the hospital where June Abrazado, the lone survivor in the crash, was staying. Abrazado recounts to the President what happened during the final moments before the crash [RTVM:YouTube]. Media still would not have access to Abrazado. Only Roxas was authorized to talk to the press.
President Aquino's first stop in Masbate: the hospital where Senior Supt. June Abrazado was taken
At around 6:50 AM, Noynoy's entourage would arrive at the SAR (Search and Rescue) Command Center in La Villa Beach Resort where a situational briefing was conducted.
It was a Search and Rescue Operation, and the op, code named Task Force Kalihim, was supervised by then Maj. Gen. Eduardo Del Rosario of the Philippine Army [OCD]. Considering that Jesse was the DILG Secretary then, it would have been prudent to put the PNP or the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in charge of the operations, but everything was coordinated and approved by Gen. Del Rosario of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) under the supervision of the Department of National Defense (DND) led by Sec. Voltaire Gazmin.
President Aquino in the SAR command center in Masbate
Where was the PNP Maritime Group or even the entire PNP leadership? What were they doing while the AFP was in charge of the Search and Retrieval Operation?
Apparently, the PNP was conducting a different kind of Search and Retrieval Operation. This one headed by USec Rico Puno and Joel Pagdilao, under the direction of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa.
Search and retrieval of documents that could incriminate them and the whole palace syndicate.
Cleanup operations as well.
"SECURE THE DOCS"
The morning of August 19, the day after the crash, USec Rico Puno assembled a team of high level PNP officials to do house cleaning, together with Jesse's own men from the DILG. First stop: 20 Lansbergh Place, Jesse's condo in Tomas Morato, Quezon City. Next stop: Jesse's offices at the DILG and the NAPOLCOM. One in Quezon City, the other one in Makati. Jesse's offices were cordoned off and locked down and only two people were later given access: Justice Secretary Leila De Lima and Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa [GMA].
All these while Leni and her children remained in Naga. Butch Robredo was the only family member who flew in to Masbate to join the Search and Rescue Op [GMA:YouTube].
Noynoy Aquino meets Butch Robredo in Masbate
What was too important in Jesse's office and condo that Puno and Co. seemed eager to get their hands on? Jesse was still missing yet Ochoa's camp was just too busy "securing" documents?
Balay was now in charge of the actual Search and Rescue Operation, while Samar took care of its own cleaning op.
Weeks later, when media found about about Puno's Search and Retrieval Operation in Jesse's offices and condo in Metro Manila, Noynoy would be forced to admit that it was he who ordered the former to "secure important documents" that Jesse had in his possession [Inq]. Similar to the order to investigate he allegedly gave to Jesse Robredo, this seems to be another belated admission by Aquino which was forced by circumstance. But the inconsistencies were glaring.
Puno would later tell the media that he got the instruction from the President at around 11:30 PM on Saturday, the day of the crash, during a meeting he had in Camp Crame together with PNP Director General Nicanor Bartolome, DILG Undersecretary Austere Panadero, P/Insp Oliver Tanseco, and a certain Joan De la Cruz, who was reportedly one of Jesse's assistants in the DILG.
Based on a Rappler report, Puno would offer the following chronology of events on Sunday, August 19, 2012:
At 9:00 am, Puno said he "supervised [the] sealing of Secretary Robredo's Office at DILG Quezon City accompanied by the following: Senior Supt Joel Pagdilao, Tanseco, Chief Inspector Apollo Togonon and other security officers of Sec. Robredo."
At 9:30 am, Puno said he was "informed by Supt. Tanseco that there were documents inside the residence/condominium of the Secretary."
At 10:00 am, Puno said he "led a team to secure Secretary Robredo's condominium unit, stayed in the condominium lobby, instructed team to sign condominium log book to document our presence, left condominium after about 20 minutes."
At 10:30 am, Puno said he "arrived at Camp Crame and supervised sealing of Secretary Robredo's office, left Camp Crame after about 15 minutes."
At 11:30 am, Puno said he "arrived at [the] National Police Commission building in Makati City; supervised [the] sealing of Secretary Robredo's office; left after about 20 minutes."
At 3:00 pm, Puno said he "accompanied Secretary of Justice [Leila De Lima] and a Presidential Security Group team that performed inspection, sealing and securing of Secretary Robredo's a.) office; b.) condominium unit; c.) Camp Crame office; and d.) Napolcom office. Entire operations completed at around 7:00 pm [Rappler].
That same morning, Leni's helper would call her up on the phone telling her that there were men trying to get inside their condo. At that time, DSWD Sec. Dinky Soliman was beside her, so she asked for her help, Leni would say in an interview several weeks later [GMA:YouTube].
Why was there no coordination between Puno's team and Leni? Remember, Leni was probably advised by Malacañang to stay put in Naga, and that is why she stayed there the whole time and never bothered to go to Masbate. The whole thing was planned. PNoy instructed her to stay so that Puno's team can get the documents inside their condo while she was away. Otherwise, they could have simply asked permission from Leni to secure her husband's documents. They were in a state of panic. Even Jun Lavadia expressed shock and disbelief that Aquino would issue such an order just hours after the plane crash [Rappler].
Yet Leni knew what was happening. She had to play along since she may have had an idea about her husband's activities in Cebu. What else could explain her strange silence during the aftermath of the crisis? Later she would tell media that she had no plans of having her husband's death investigated. Neither did she plan to look into her husband's documents [Inq].
Leni would simply request her friend, DOJ Secretary Leila De Lima, to go to their condominium unit the following day, August 20, to get what needed to be secured. De Lima's statement, however, was confusing. She would say that she did not get any documents, but admitted to taking some folders and sealing them.
"Not a single document... ang pinalabas ko lang doon ay mga personal effects na nirequest ni Mrs. Robredo. Request lang ni Mrs. Robredo and I saw there were certain documents there, so I secured them also right there. (Not a single document... what I had taken out were his personal effects upon the request of Ms. Robredo. I saw there were certain documents there, so I secured them also right there)," she said.
"Lamesa sa condo, yung ang mga kinuha ko. Ang sure ako may mga personal items, yun ang mga pinadala sa akin. Yung folders, sineal ko yun (I took the table from the condo. There were personal items that they asked me to get. There were folders which I sealed.) [Rappler]."
Based on this confusing statement, it was never clearly established whether De Lima took out those folders that she sealed or simply left them there after taking Jesse's personal effects. But under the circumstances, I would assume she took them out.
De Lima later claimed that she and Executive Secretary Ochoa - who was designated as interim DILG secretary on August 18 - agreed that an inventory of Robredo's documents should be done upon the return of Robredo's staff from Naga. She also claimed to have no knowledge if an inventory was indeed conducted.
De Lima also had a personal interest in securing these docs. The shit was intricately intertwined. Any document that provided meaningful intel about the country's drug syndicates can potentially end up at her doorstep in the DOJ. Surreptitiously, De Lima was doing her own version of Bantay Salakay.
The confusion brought about by Noynoy's order to Puno became problematic. Noynoy knew he had to take full control of the situation. They were making way too many screw ups. The media was starting to sense that something was off, and conspiracy theories started circulating that the plane crash may have been a premeditated plan to get rid of Jesse because of the investigations that he was conducting. A plan needed to be hatched in order to distract the media and keep them from rummaging around and poking their noses where they were not supposed to. The news blackout wouldn't last. A high profile government official's plane had just crashed, and the conspiracy angle was just too irresistible for media to simply ignore. Noynoy had to bring in his spin doctors to create a diversion.
Upon seeing the immediate reaction of the people to the tragedy that befell Jesse, he knew exactly how to spin the situation. Amidst the crisis, Noynoy Aquino saw an opportunity. And this was his political party's expertise.
WAGGING THE DOG: THE SUBTLE ART OF LP NECROPOLITICS
Over the years, no other entity in the country has perfected the art of necropolitics, otherwise known as the "politics of death," more than the yellows. Here in the Philippines, political capital can be built upon the death of a popular political figure. Noynoy Aquino's sudden rise to power was mostly due to the highly effective PR sympathy campaign generated by the death of his mother, the former President Corazon "Cory" Aquino in 2009. Cory's presidency was also a direct result of her husband's death in 1983.
In a 2015 Opinion piece for the Philippine Star, Atty. Josephus Jimenez wrote:
"Perhaps, it is only in the Philippines that death in the family makes a very potent political capital. Somebody dies, a spouse, a mother or father passes away, and another family member rises in the political totem pole. Way back in our rather colorful political history, sometime before Martial Law, an LP senatorial candidate, Gaudencio Antonino from Nueva Ecija, died in a freak helicopter accident, less than 24 hours before the election day. The party immediately replaced him with the grieving widow, Magnolia, who won as one of the only two surviving LP bets in an NP-dominated election. The people didn't know that they were voting for a dead man, whose votes were credited to his wife."
"Following the same pattern in the same political trend, when Senator Ninoy Aquino was assassinated in 1983, his widow Corazon became a presidentiable, and the leading candidate then, Senator Salvador Doy Laurel had to give way. It was claimed that Cory Aquino really lost to Ferdinand Marcos in the snap elections. But the election results were overtaken by the People Power Revolution, after which President Corazon Aquino was installed as a revolutionary head of state and head of government. She governed the nation, under a hurriedly done Freedom Constitution without a senate and without a congress."
"When President Cory Aquino died, her only son, who was not really an exceptional legislator, suddenly rose to prominence as the preferred candidate, dislodging the anointed LP candidate, Mar Roxas in 2010. Cory Aquino became president as a result of Ninoy's death. Noynoy became president because of Cory's demise. That is why PNoy's anointment of Mar Roxas earlier this year is 'bayad utang,' an implied 'quid pro quo.' These all resulted from someone dying just in time. Is this an emerging cultural phenomenon then?"
"In the same manner, Senator Grace Poe made a lot of political capital out of the death of her adoptive father, Fernando Poe Jr. She always mentions FPJ in her political speeches, perhaps to derive benefit from the goodwill that 'a King' established in playing the good guy in his movies, the savior of the oppressed, the crusader for justice and the defender of the victims of injustice. Not even the real Poe, Lovi Poe, uses the demise of the great actor to advance her career. This, to me, is blatant opportunism, taking advantage of the dead. I say that with all due respect though, for both the living and the dead [FreeMan]."
As proven by historical experience, death seems to be quite a gainful enterprise for Noynoy's Liberal Party. It has successfully produced two presidents, who rose from relative obscurity to instant power and fame. So singularly effective was the PR campaign that was spun out of Cory Aquino's demise that Noynoy got catapulted from utter mediocrity to unforeseen bankability.
Noynoy may have silently loathed Jesse yet upon noticing that all the requisite variables were there, he pounced on the opportunity to create a clever diversion. Not only will he be able to distract the people from the real issue, he can exploit the opportunity to strengthen his political capital and stealthily proceed with his other schemes, so he mobilizes a well-oiled PR campaign to do exactly as they did when his mother died.
Aquino would capitalize on the composite ignorance of the people and direct his PR team to create a compelling narrative around Jesse's persona. Despite his position as DILG Secretary, very little was known about Jesse outside Naga. All of a sudden, stories would come in about Jesse's exceptional humility and unique leadership traits. People were instantly hooked on the drama. Like a telenovela waiting to unfold, people tuned in and eagerly anticipated what will happen next as the search continued.
They already had a template. All they needed to do was to replicate the tried and tested formula as they would a profitable franchise. The narrative and casting were perfect. All the ingredients were there: you have the dramatic circumstances surrounding the demise, the dead hero, and the resolute widow. With profit-driven friends in the media equally capitalizing on the incident, nothing could possibly go wrong. ABS-CBN had done this many times before. The deaths of Rico Yan, Fernando Poe Jr., Cory Aquino and even Dolphy would be covered the exact same way, and the resulting sympathy and public attention have proven to be extremely profitable.
It was also a great help that Jesse himself had his own private PR machinery that did not waste time extolling the values of the deceased. The Liberal Party's and Jesse's PR teams would go on maximum overdrive. Pretty soon, mainstream and social media could not get enough of Jesse Robredo. Leni herself as well as her children would find themselves relishing all the attention.
People loved Jesse. His sudden posthumous popularity was anchored on a symbol. A trademark that Jesse himself had perfected for so many years as mayor of Naga City. As the PR machinery's wheels started turning, everybody wanted to ride the Jesse Robredo bandwagon. Even those who knew very little of Jesse started talking about how exceptionally kind he was, and would contribute to the countless testimonials about someone who just died because of a plane crash. Add to this the numerous published articles recounting Jesse's immaculate life story and the guy could have easily qualified for sainthood. Tales of Jesse's "heroism" would fill the pages of broadsheets and tabloids alike, and the TV networks featured endless specials about Jesse's inspiring backstory. At this time, the only thing that seemed missing was Jesse's spirit performing a couple of verified miracles. The PR spin was so good that if Jesse's ashes were sent to the Vatican, the Pope would have been ready to canonize Blessed Jesse Robredo of La Isla Peñafrancia.
The resulting PR campaign spawned by the tragedy proved to be too successful that those who knew the real Jesse Robredo would be subdued into uncomfortable silence and submission. Jesse himself may not have foreseen it, but suddenly he became the new poster boy of the Daang Matuwid (Straight Path) Revolution.
Jesse Robredo was played by A-list actor Jericho Rosales in a later MMK episode by ABS-CBN while DImples Romana played the character of Leni
THE SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH
While PNoy's spin doctors were bombarding the people with all kinds of stories about Jesse Robredo, from his tsinelas-wearing brand of leadership to accounts of his being an extraordinary husband and father to his wife and children, Mar Roxas and company continued the search for their fallen comrade underneath the treacherous waters of Masbate.
At around 2:00 PM of August 19, a US Plane with FLIR (Forward Looking Infra Red) made a flyby in the SAR area. Two hours later, rescue divers recovered the flight plan of the Piper Seneca on the seabed 100 feet below. At around 5:00 PM, the command post deployed SONAR (Sound Navigation and Ranging), an advanced equipment that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect objects on or under the surface of the water.
The following day, American and Filipino divers utilizing Nitrox (nitrogen oxygen) were deployed to dive deeper, covering an area of 4 x 4 kilometers. Around 10:00 AM, a briefing of Task Force Sagip Kalihim was given by Maj. Gen. Eduardo Del Rosario. Early in the afternoon, a Press Briefing was given by DOTC Secretary and SAR Spokesman Mar Roxas providing details of the possible location of the plane and the efforts of the different SAR assets being deployed. At around 3:30 PM, three Foreign Technical Divers were deployed in the SAR area to dive roughly at a depth of 200 feet. President Noynoy Aquino would then leave Masbate for Naga City to personally give updates to Jesse's family. As of 5:00 PM, there was still no sign of the plane that carried Jesse and his companions. At around 8:00 PM, SAR operations were temporarily halted due to unfavorable sea conditions and poor visibility [NDRRMC].
Yet an insider who was there during the Search and Rescue Op would tell us that the plane was found in the evening of August 20 by the ROVs (Remote Operated Vehicles). Live underwater footage was sent to the command center, our source said, so everyone in the command post was aware that two bodies were inside the plane the night of August 20th, one of which was Jesse Robredo.
Everybody is all eyes as British technical diver Matt Reed showed footage of the plane's fuselage in the SAR Command Center in Masbate City
Contrary to this, official reports would state that the plane's fuselage was discovered the following day, August 21 at around 7:25 AM. Secretary Mar Roxas mentioned this during a live press briefing held in the morning of August 21 that the bodies were located around 7:45 that same morning [ANC:YouTube]. The wreckage was some 800 meters from the Masbate shoreline at a depth of about 54 meters (177 ft). Our insider, an official of one of the government agencies that took part in the op, was among those who had operational clearance during the SAR and was personally involved in the deployment of technical divers in the crash site. For obvious security reasons, the source requested anonymity.
LEFT: Technical Divers discover the plane's inverted fuselage and attempt to recover the bodies inside RIGHT: SAR Spokesperson and DOTC Secretary Mar Roxas announces that Jesse Robredo's body is found during a morning press conference on August 21, 2012
Why would Mar Roxas lie about the timeline of the plane's discovery? I asked our source if Roxas had knowledge of this and thought that perhaps Mar was simply fed the wrong information but the source told us that Roxas was closely monitoring the dives and was being updated real time. The source even admitted to have been surprised when Roxas claimed that the discovery was made in the morning of August 21. He/she even went as far as chastising Roxas for shedding "crocodile tears"in front of the TV cameras when he already knew about Jesse's body being found the night before and that he seemed to have maintained composure upon hearing the news. The same claim would appear on the final report submitted by the NDRRMC about the plane crash. You may read a full copy of the report here (the official report also contains pictures of the actual Search and Rescue Operation).
This, however, would not be the only inconsistency found on the report. Here's a screen cap:
Note that the report mentions that on August 21, three (3) bodies were found inside the fuselage - which would leave us to assume that these bodies were those of Sec. Robredo, Capt. Bahinting, and co-pilot Chand. The fourth passenger, June Abrazado, survived the crash and was alive and well. It also mentions that Brumbach was injured while "trying to recover the remains of two (2) pilots inside the plane."
Yet on August 23, another body which was previously unidentified, was found floating off the coast of Masbate City and was later identified to be that of Nepalese co-pilot Kshitiz Chand [PhilStar] [YouTube]. Whose body was it then that was found inside the plane with Jesse and Capt. Bahinting?
We asked our insider and he/she would tell us that only two bodies were found inside the plane on the evening of August 20. Whoever wrote the report may have committed an error when it mentioned that three bodies were found inside the fuselage instead of two. Chand was not in the plane and may have been thrown out upon impact, which explains why his body was found two days later after Jesse's and Captain Bahinting's bodies were recovered. But the source would tell us that both Jesse and the pilot were still fastened onto their seats when their bodies were found. According to the source, Jesse appears to be seated beside the pilot, with his face upon the windshield. Upon impact, Jesse's seat may have been dislodged and thrown into the cockpit so that Jesse's face was smashed into the plane's windshield. The plane was also inverted. We asked for pictures but the source would tell us that all pictures and video footage that were taken during the retrieval were classified and would be kept from the media. They weren't allowed to record the live feeds from the technical divers or save copies of the pictures sent by the divers to the command center. The source would swear though that he/she was telling the whole truth.
In the absence of any clear documentary or photographic evidence to prove his/her claim, we took the insider's testimony with a certain degree of skepticism about its truth. What continued to perplex us though, was Malacañang's refusal to release the actual photographs and video footage taken inside the fuselage. This could easily corroborate or debunk the statement of our source.
Why did they choose to keep it from the public? Now that a new government is in place, it is our fervent hope that a new investigation about the incident is launched and that all photographs, documents, official reports, transcripts, testimonies and physical evidence be declassified so that the people will know what truly happened. Surely, even Jesse's family deserve to know the truth. But Leni says that it's water under the bridge. Either she is aware of the truth or was simply told to let go of the incident.
Another question that continues to confound us is this: Why was Captain Jessup Bahinting's body retrieved the following day, August 22, when the divers discovered his body alongside Jesse's the exact same time the plane's fuselage was found [Inq]? Jesse's body was brought to the shore on August 21, and would be taken to Naga the same day while Captain Bahinting's body was left underneath to be taken out a day after.
LEFT: British Tech Diver Matt Reed on his way to the dive spot RIGHT: The plane's fuselage taken to shore
As for Mar's earlier statement that somebody offered Jesse a plane ride, this appears to be false.
We were surprised nobody from the mainstream news outlets made a report as to who really chartered the plane and for how much. If there ever was, it could have been blacked out. Again, we scoured the web and chanced upon this very significant yet largely ignored detail from an opinion piece by Phil Star Global's Bobit Avila:
"I also talked to Avia Tours Flight Director Capt. Antonio Jureidini who told me that Capt. Jessup wasn’t supposed to fly that Saturday. But he got a call from Sec. Robredo who insisted that he fly him to Naga. When Sec. Robredo got into the Avia Tours hangar, Capt. Bahinting was preparing his favorite plane, a Cessna 172 G1000, which has an ultra-modern glass cockpit instrumentation just like an Airbus airliner."
"But seeing that it was a single engine aircraft, Sec. Robredo asked Capt. Bahinting to use the Piper Seneca II instead. Call it fate… that perhaps it was already Sec. Robredo’s time. He already had an airline ticket to fly to Manila. But he decided to fly straight to Naga for his daughter’s awarding. He could have accepted Capt. Bahinting’s choice of aircraft, but chose the Piper Seneca II instead. Yes, most people believe that a twin-engine plane is always safer than a single engine one [PhilStar]."
So according to this Capt. Jureidini, Jesse was the one who chartered the flight. Nobody offered him a plane ride. But why did Mar say otherwise? From what we can deduce, Mar may have simply mentioned the "friend" in an interview so that people will not hold Jesse to task for ostentatiously renting a private aircraft just so that he can make it home earlier. Jesse had just collected, and he was used to chartering planes and choppers when he became the DILG secretary. But it wouldn't be good PR if this would be revealed to the public. Imagine how much a single private plane ride costs.
According to a Rappler report, based on Aviatour's website, the charter rate for a twin-engine aircraft (5 passengers) going from Mactan to Masbate is Php 65,000, excluding waiting charges of Php 2,000 per hour and an overnight rate of Php 8,000 [Rappler]. Considering that Jesse was en route to Naga, the rate could have been much higher. Renting a plane certainly wouldn't be consistent with the bus-riding image Jesse was trying to project in public. So Mar had to lie in order to protect his buddy. And if Mar could lie about something as simple as who chartered the plane, when it came to his succeeding statements, he could have been lying all along.
There are too many riddles nagging to be addressed. Only a full-blown investigation will shed light on the actual circumstances that surrounded Jesse's death. It was too obvious that the Aquino administration was responsible for a major cover-up. Not only did they refuse to conduct an autopsy on Jesse's body to determine the actual cause of death (if they ever did, why did they not publish the autopsy report?), Leni herself would be an accomplice to the cover-up by choosing to have her husband's remains cremated, thereby rendering impossible any future autopsy or exhumation [ABS].
We do not have the answers to all these riddles and mysteries. Our job, first and foremost, is to conduct thorough research and ask questions. Questions that could inspire popular discussion with the hope that these may trigger an investigation.
Yes, Jesse is dead. But we cannot allow the truth to be held hostage out of respect for the dead.
Jesse was a public official. He was at the time of his death and a lot of questions remain unanswered. Our taxes paid for Jesse's plane ride. The Filipino people deserve to know what happened.
There was a conspiracy. What made the conspiracy real and plausible was the subsequent cover-up. The foul play angle may be a bit far fetched. The same goes to the theory that the plane may have been deliberately sabotaged. It could not have been premeditated. It was Jesse who decided to change flight plans at the last minute. It was he who decided which plane to use. While we do not discount the possibility, logic dictates that this is a bit of a stretch. So far, we have not found any evidence that points to foul play. But there are tons of circumstantial evidence that point to a cover-up.
And where there is a cover-up, there is a crime.
The crime may not necessarily be murder. It need not be. What interests us is finding whatever it is that they tried to hide.
One way or the other, the truth must surface. We cannot just sweep this under the rug. Burying the truth serves as a guarantee that crimes will be committed again. This we cannot allow.
One of the comments we discovered in a Disqus Thread made five years ago that echoes our exact same sentiments on the matter
A CONVENIENT DIVERSION
The public's fixation on the Jesse Robredo tragedy even turned into an opportunity for PNoy and his cohorts to subliminally sneak in their other agenda without having to face the people's scrutiny. While his spin doctors labored tirelessly to peddle more of Jesse's inspirational stories to the unknowing populace, behind the scenes, Noynoy was cooking up one of the most strategic appointments he will ever make during his term as chief executive: that of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno [Inq].
The Senate had just convicted Chief Justice Renato Corona [Rappler] so it was PNoy's presidential prerogative to appoint the incoming Chief Justice. Sereno was Noynoy's first appointee to the Supreme court and used to be the youngest appointee to the SC until the appointment of Marvic Leonen in 2012 at the age of 49. This was a smart move on the part of Aquino. At the time of her appointment on August 24, 2012, just three days after Jesse Robredo's body is found, Sereno is only 52 and will have a total of 18 years to serve until her mandatory retirement at age 70, virtually making her Chief Justice for life. She is set to retire on 2030.
How was it that Sereno managed to overtake five Senior Associate Justices in order to become head of the judiciary despite her young age and considerable lack of experience?
She is Aquino's tool, period.
Sereno was the sole dissenting opinion in the controversial Hacienda Luisita ruling - a landmark decision which cost Renato Corona his head [Rappler]. It would be best to remember that majority of the justices in the Supreme Court then were appointees of the former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and were mostly sympathetic to Corona, much to Aquino's dismay.
He desperately needed to control the judiciary and there was no other way to ensure that but to appoint Sereno as Chief Justice. Given Sereno's young age at the time of her appointment, she will be useful to Aquino way beyond his term as President.
Nobody saw it coming. If Corona was criticized for being a midnight appointee, Sereno's appointment by Aquino sub-rosa reeked of political opportunism. But we have to admit it was nothing short of a political masterstroke. It was pure genius.
Surprise: President Aquino appoints the first female Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on August 24, 2012
A HERO'S FUNERAL
"The man felt most comfortable in shorts and rubber slippers. But the funeral rites in his honor were fit for a head of state and would certainly discomfit him."
This was how the Philippine Daily Inquirer described the funeral rites accorded to Jesse Robredo by the Palace [Inq]. After his body was recovered in Masbate in August 21, Jesse's remains were immediately flown to Naga City and taken directly to Funeraria Imperial. The President himself managed and supervised the whole process. He even personally traveled to Naga to offer a state funeral for his unconfirmed Interior Secretary [PhilStar].
It was astonishing to see how much hands on attention Noynoy was giving Jesse posthumously when there was much silent antipathy between them when he was alive. There was no news of an autopsy. Jesse's remains would be at Funeraria Imperial for nine hours before it was transferred to the Archbishop's Palace, where a mass was immediately held. A closed casket public viewing also commenced. Hundreds of sympathizers lined up to pay their respects, bowing at Jesse's casket which was draped with a Philippine flag.
In an unprecedented move, the President would likewise declare six days of national mourning starting in August 21 until the day of his interment. Through a signed Presidential Proclamation, he also decreed that the national flag be flown at half-mast for 6 days, in government buildings all throughout the country and abroad [Rappler].
"The administration, principally the Liberal Party faction in its fold, organized an extravaganza to mourn Jesse's death and celebrate his life," the Philippine Star observed. "His coffin would be shuttled to Manila and back. A 19 gun salute, just two short of what is given a head of state, would be done. The remains would be installed at Malacañang Palace: an event unprecedented in our country's political history. Due to this, everyone who is anybody now wanted to be seen as Jesse's friend [PhilStar]."
RIGHT: Cory and Kris at Ninoy's Funeral, August 1983 LEFT: Leni and Jillian at Jesse's Funeral, August 2012
“It all seemed like Tita Cory’s funeral,” said Harvey Keh, who was Jesse's colleague in the Kaya Natin! Movement for Good Governance and Ethical Leadership. Keh just couldn't help noticing all the strange parallels. It was surreal. It seemed to him a lot like 2009, when in the name of necropolitics, Cory's death was purposely transformed from an act of private mourning into a full-fledged public spectacle. Little did he realize it wasn't just like 2009, it was exactly like August 1983. Leni's photograph embracing young Jillian beside Jesse's casket appeared to us like a modern take on Cory Aquino's iconic image with young Kris in 1983. Even the color of their dresses were the same. August 2012 was simply a reboot of an old 80's classic masterpiece. It was the same story and script, this time with a new cast of characters. The direction would be all too familiar. After all, it was being brought to us by the same team who made the two previous box-office hits. Unbeknownst to her or not, as early as August 2012, just days after her husband died, Leni was already being propped up for the role of her lifetime.
The arrival honors for Jesse in Malacañang
During the arrival honors, President Aquino, together with Jesse's widow and daughters Aika, Patricia and Jillian, stood under a covered porch, as eight uniformed pallbearers carried the casket from the hearse while a dirge played in the background. A hovering chopper rained confetti from the sky as Jesse's flag-draped coffin was carried into Kalayaan Hall [RTVM:YouTube]. The pallbearers then gave way to the honorary pallbearers who took their position around the casket, among them Budget Secretary Butch Abad, Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas, Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya, and Harvey Keh. “We only give this kind of arrival honors to the President, foreign dignitaries, or three-star generals,” Philippine Army spokesperson Maj. Harold Canuboc declared after the 15-minute ceremony [Inq].
The whole gang was all smiles as palace officials surround Jesse's casket for a photo op
It was an impressive spectacle. Gloating with much pride and satisfaction at the success of his well-orchestrated brainchild, Noynoy would even go as far as offering interment at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Yet Leni would insist that Jesse's remains be returned to Naga to be cremated. As his wife would have it, Jesse would return to his "happy place," his kingdom, his comfort zone.
Aquino would likewise confer the Legion of Honor Award to Jesse Robredo during the final rites in Naga City. “The Philippine Legion of Honor is considered the highest award the President can bestow without the need for approval of Congress. Secretary Robredo is being conferred the Philippine Legion of Honor for life achievement as Secretary of the Interior and as Mayor of Naga City,” said the bulletin posted on the Official Gazette [Rappler]. After the concelebrated requiem mass he offered a eulogy in which he sang Jesse's praises. An abrupt change in tone since Leni would later admit in an Inquirer interview that "not all was rosy between the President and her husband [Inq]:
“I’m willing to admit there were many times during Jesse’s incumbency that I told him ‘just let go already,’” Leni revealed to the Inquirer in an interview made before the election in 2016.
Days before the August 2012 plane crash, Jesse had talked to his wife about the precariousness of his position.
“That was the Sunday before the plane crash, I was driving him to the airport, and he said, ‘hindi ko alam kung may patutunguhan pa ba ito’ (I don’t know if this is heading anywhere),” she remembered him saying in a defeated tone. He was flying to Cebu to make a series of appearances on President Aquino’s behalf.
In those days, Jesse’s “feeling was that he could be sacked at any time,” Leni said.
Noynoy's sudden turnaround was not surprising. In reality, the accolades he threw on Jesse were meant not so much to bestow honor upon the deceased, but more so to divert the real issue with regard to his own personal complicity. Aquino will do anything to save his hide. Even making heroes out of scoundrels and turning sinners into saints. The whole spectacle was nothing but a travesty. An elaborately staged sham. A well camouflaged deception.
Scenes during Jesse's burial, August 28, 2012, Naga City
AN OBVIOUS CONSPIRACY
Going back to the circumstances surrounding Jesse's death, a curious element is the involvement of Joel Pagdilao.
In 2016, rumors started circulating online that Jesse's death may have been the result of foul play since he was investigating Joel Pagdilao, one of the five narco-generals identified by President Duterte. It was later revealed even in photographs that Pagdilao was one of those who accompanied Puno when the latter tried to enter Jesse's condo in Lansbergh allegedly upon the instruction of President Aquino [PhilStar].
Joel Pagdilao (left) with DILG USec Rico Puno as they attempted to enter Jesse Robredo's penthouse unit in 20 Lansbergh Place.
Clearly, as we mentioned earlier, there was an internal power struggle inside the DILG at that time between Roxas and Robredo's camp and Puno's group, which was aligned with a faction led by no less than Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa.
Since Pagdilao was with Puno, one may be led to conclude that the two are working together to facilitate the cover up. Under intense pressure, Puno later resigned paving the way for Mar Roxas, who led the rival camp, to ultimately succeed Jesse as DILG Secretary [ABS]. It was clear that since Puno was the one attracting all the heat, Aquino had to let him go in order to pacify the situation, which was threatening to spiral out of control if no drastic measures were taken. Puno then became the sacrificial goat and had to be discharged to keep the whole thing from blowing up [ABS].
The question is: If Puno was working with Pagdilao, why did Mar Roxas, Jesse's close friend and boss at the Balay faction, keep Pagdilao and promote him twice? First, as head of the QCPD in 2014 and then later as one-star General and head of the NCRPO in 2015 [ManilaTimes].
Another key element here is Police Supt. Oliver Tanseco, one of Jesse Robredo's aides in the DILG, who was also present during the alleged attempted break in. Tanseco was the one who narrated to pseudo-journalist Raissa Robles his version of what exactly happened during that day [RaissaRobles]. What is quite perplexing is, if PNoy ordered Puno to secure sensitive and possibly incriminating documents in Jesse's offices in the DILG and NAPOLCOM and in his condo unit in order to cover their tracks as they are being investigated by Jesse, why in God's name was Tanseco there? In an opinion piece by Philippine Star columnist William Esposo, he observed: "The involvement of so many people in carrying out the orders of the President to secure the sensitive documents would inhibit any hanky-panky from being attempted. As the old joke says, Puno may look like one - but he is not stupid. It must be noted too that many of those who were involved in the process were Jesse's men [PhilStar]."
LEFT: Supt. Oliver Tanseco RIGHT: Former NCRPO Chief Gen. Joel Pagdilao
Again let us reiterate. There WAS a conspiracy. What makes the existence of a conspiracy plausible was the subsequent cover up. Up to now we would maintain that what happened to Jesse Robredo was an accident - since no evidence can sufficiently prove that he was murdered. But Aquino's order to secure and recover the sensitive documents - something that can potentially incriminate all of them - says it all. Jesse was involved, in fact he was right smack on top of it.
What the events have shown clearly is the fact that when Jesse died, the opposing factions had to work together to facilitate the cover up - hence, the cooperation and collaboration between Puno's group and Jesse's own men. Pagdilao's subsequent promotion also proves one thing - he
was effectively working for both camps - otherwise, Mar Roxas as the new DILG Secretary would have stopped his appointment.
LEFT: DOTC Secretary Jun Abaya RIGHT: DILG Secretary Mar Roxas
Now that President Duterte himself identified Pagdilao as a drug protector, Roxas, Ochoa and Aquino's complicity cannot be denied - since they are all Pagdilao's principals and were the ones responsible for Pagdilao's promotion [Politiko]. Now if Jesse Robredo was not involved, why did Mar Roxas put him there in the first place? Would Mar and PNoy be stupid enough to let a moralist crusader head an agency as strategic and important to them as the DILG?
As the saying goes, birds of the same feather do flock together. Jesse and Mar's closeness cannot be disputed. They treated each other like brothers and looked after each other's interest. What surprises us is that many people seem to have no difficulty in depicting Mar as a crook while his close friend and confidante Jesse is widely regarded as a saint. Nothing can be more contradictory. It doesn't make any sense. If Jesse was indeed the upright person he projects himself to be, logic and principle dictates that he should have disassociated himself from the likes of Mar Roxas and Noynoy Aquino and refused to be used as a tool for their self serving interests.
Same goes with Leni, who it appears, gladly and willingly took the mantle upon her husband's death. She continued her husband's role in the abomination that is the Liberal Party and relishes that role, titillated by the prospect that one day she will assume the position of the most powerful person in the land.
For Leni, the end justifies the means. Her dubious victory and engineered political ascendancy constitutes not just an insult to our collective intelligence but likewise poses a threat to our common desire to break free from the past.
CONTINUED CLEANUP
The cleanup would continue even after Jesse's burial. It went on until all loose ends are conveniently tied up and all witnesses are effectively silenced. In November 22, 2012, the Philippine Star ran an article about a CAAP (Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines) special investigator who reported an alleged whitewash in the accident report submitted by the five-member panel to Malacañang. The panel was created by former Transportation and now Interior Secretary Mar Roxas to investigate the fatal crash [ABS].
The official accident report cited “pilot error” as the main cause of the crash. The report says the most flagrant error committed by Captain Jessup Bahinting was his failure to turn back the plane to Cebu after an engine malfunctioned, showing his lack of experience in handling emergency situations. The committee also blamed engine failure and poor management by Aviatour’s Fly’n Inc., including Bahinting’s supposed connivance with officers of the CAAP for the issuance of a certificate of airworthiness without proper tests [Inq]. You may view a copy of the investigation report here. You may also access the complete PowerPoint presentation in this link.
Yet according to CAAP special investigator Cesar Lucero, the submitted report did not include the accounts of Coast Guard divers who retrieved the bodies of the fatalities and the Piper Seneca plane and its broken parts from the seabed.
According to an ABS-CBN News Article:
Lucero said right after locating the submerged plane, the Coast Guard divers reported that they found the body of the pilot, Capt. Jessup Bahinting, still strapped to the right pilot seat, indicating he was not the pilot-in-command during the flight.
“There was no categorical pronouncement as to who was at the left or right seat of the cockpit, a very vital information needed in the investigation,” Lucero said. He said the report also failed to mention whether the fact-finding committee had interviewed any of the technical divers.
The CAAP investigator, who was placed under a 90-day preventive suspension for revealing to media the result of his separate investigation into the incident, said the report also did not include the history of the ill-fated Piper Seneca and its parts.
He said the panel report also failed to mention the plane’s cost when it was bought from its country of origin, when it was brought to the Philippines, or if it ever passed civil aviation flying standards.
Lucero said earlier documents about the Seneca showed that its defective right engine was imported as surplus material.
He also told the President that he had already filed graft charges against some former and current CAAP officials, and the Office of the Ombudsman is already conducting its own probe into the complaint.
Lucero remains under suspension pending the resolution of an administrative case filed against him for grave misconduct.
The suspension was a result of his revelation to the media that the Nepalese pilot was in command of the plane during the flight.
CAAP has also accused Lucero of violating a July 30 memorandum regarding media relations and press releases.
The investigator said he was just doing his job as special investigator tasked to supervise investigation of irregularities, and violation of laws and regulation committed inside the agency.
A veteran CAAP investigator, Lucero has undergone training at the US Federal Aviation Administration and the International Civil Aviation Administration in Thailand, including anti-terrorism and biological hazard courses. He said he would file counter charges for obstruction of justice against CAAP officials and for allegedly trying to cover up irregularities in the agency. He insisted that the Seneca, owned by the Aviatour Fly'n Inc., was being used both in training and commercial flights [ABS].
Bayan Muna Partylist Rep. Teddy Casiño was alarmed by Lucero's suspension. “Why is he being suspended for revealing these facts? If the CAAP is conducting an honest to goodness probe then these should all be considered and not have Lucero suspended or silenced."
"Judging from CAAP's actions, they might end up holding nobody accountable for the crash. But lapses were committed based on documents revealed by Lucero, who is just doing his job as a CAAP investigator," Casiño said [MindanaoDaily].
A year after the accident, in August 2013, Matthew Caldwell, an American diver who was among those who discovered Jesse Robredo's body ends up dead due to a freak shooting incident [Inq].
According to news reports, Caldwell was shot in the face point blank by a security guard, Ericson Blacquio, in a subdivision gate in Las Piñas after a supposed heated argument over unpaid association dues.
What is peculiar about Caldwell's killing was that the security guard who shot him managed to flee the scene immediately after the shooting incident, riding a motorcycle driven by an accomplice that gives us the impression that the crime had been premeditated, using the altercation as a pretext for the shooting. It was Caldwell who was said to have identified Jesse's body during the Search and Retrieval Op in Masbate in 2012 [ProPinoy]. Caldwell, who had been residing in the country for more than 20 years, served as a facilitator in “Task Force Kalihim.” He had been a partner of the Philippine Coast Guard in its search and rescue operations in the past years. Could there have been reason for Caldwell to be silenced?
American Technical Diver Matthew Caldwell
Two years later, Caldwell's killer, Ericson Blacquio, would be shot dead after allegedly resisting arrest and shooting it out with the police in Brgy. Mabini, Cadiz City, Negros Occidental [Visayan].
In 2014, one of Jesse Robredo's former police aides gets killed in another shooting incident. Retired Senior Police Officer 3 Dionisio “Dennis” Tan, 56, was shot at close range several times at around 7 p.m. in his residence at Barangay Guadalupe Nuevo, Makati City. The incident report revealed that while the victim was walking towards his house after alighting from his car, a man armed with a 45 caliber pistol approached him and fired consecutive gunshots. Tan was declared dead on arrival at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City due to gunshot wounds on his chest and chin. Witnesses told the police that the assailant fled on foot toward Edsa after the shooting [Inq].
All these deaths seem to be too strange for coincidence, made even more interesting by the fact that the victims were somehow related to the late DILG Secretary - one by virtue of his previous employment, the other by mere circumstance. As for now all we can do is speculate, and hope that the new government will find cause in reopening the case, in order to shed light on the lingering questions and provide the necessary verdict and closure to the tragedy.
EVERYTHING COMES FULL CIRCLE
Whenever people ask me about my personal thoughts as to what could have actually caused Jesse's death, I would always give the exact same reply.
Gravity is what killed Jesse Robredo. I do not take personal satisfaction in his demise since I believe that one should pay for his sins while he is alive but in retrospect, what happened to him may have been an act of nature. Perhaps it was simply nature's way of keeping the balance of things. Another way of telling us that everything has a limit. That we all have to pay one way or the other.
I remember the night I talked to Luis Ortega as he told me a story about a witness telling him how Emil's dead body was chopped to pieces and thrown into the deep waters of Ticao Pass in Masbate, around the same place where Jesse's plane crashed [TV5:YouTube]. It was karmic destiny, I thought. Truly, what goes up, must come down. It is plain and simple physics.
But by some bizarre twist of fate more unpredictable than fiction, Jesse Robredo was again hailed as someone he clearly was not. I told myself that even in death, you can never underestimate the guy.
In God's full wrath, Jesse fell from the sky a corrupt blackmailing crook. But as his body was brought up from the deepest recesses of the fathomless trench he fell into, the Liberal Party resurrected Jesse not just as a hero, but a modern-day saint.
As if it weren't enough that he deceived us in life, Jesse continued to deceive us even in death. And the deception would go on until his 'grieving' widow decided to take the place of her dead husband to continue his legacy of lies. Blinded by ambition and a misplaced sense of historical entitlement, Leni would choose to overstep her natural boundaries and reach needlessly for the sky.
At hindsight, Leni should learn from her husband's tragedy. It may be harsh, but it is just how the law of nature works: The higher you climb, the harder you fall.
Noynoy, Mar and Leni visit Jesse's tomb in Naga, 2016
