Press Release
February 27, 2008

KIKO ASKS: IS MADRIAGA A "TROJAN HORSE"? URGES FELLOW SENATORS NOT TO LET GUARDS DOWN

The credibility of the new witness attributing anomaly to the ZTE-NBN deal must still be put to strict scrutiny since he may just be part of a scheme to undermine the integrity of the Senate proceedings, Senate Majority Leader and Independent senator Francis Pangilinan today said.

"Hindi natin maaalis ang posibilidad na pakawala lamang si Mr. Madriaga ng mga tao o grupong nais bahiran ng kasinungalingan ang imbestigasyon ng Senado ukol sa ZTE-NBN deal. The Senate should not let its guard down, we cannot discount the possibility that efforts are underway to undermine the credibility of the proceedings with unreliable witnesses and testimonies," Kiko said.

Dante Madriaga, who claims to be a consultant for ZTE in the said project, yesterday told senators that President Gloria Arroyo and her husband First Gentleman Mike Arroyo, among others, allegedly benefited from the deal "While I am willing to give Mr. Madriaga the benefit of the doubt, I remain skeptical, and I am withholding judgment as to his credibility. Unlike Jun Lozada, he seemed too relaxed, and was not at all reluctant while accusing no less than President Arroyo and the First Gentleman of serious criminal acts. Without the corroborative testimonies of other individuals he implicated, like a certain Leo San Miguel, a number of Mr. Madriaga's allegations are mere hearsay, " Kiko explained.

Pangilinan furthers that the testimonies of the other witnesses, such as Jun Lozada, Jose De Venecia III and Commission on Higher Education (CHED) chairman Romulo Neri, are already enough to establish that criminal acts had been committed in the ZTE-NBN deal.

"We cannot discount the possibility that Mr. Madriaga would recant in the future, claiming that he was just forced to testify in order to cast doubts on the integrity of the Senate hearings. We should treat him with extreme caution," Kiko quipped.

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