Jinggoy bats DOJ and P’Noy to place Mike Arroyo in the immigration watchlist

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada at the senate
blue ribbon committee hearing.

MANILA, August 3, 2011-To ensure former First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo’s presence at the next hearing of the Senate related to the anomalous purchase of the Philippine National Police (PNP) of three helicopters two years ago, Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada bats the Department of Justice and Malacañang for the urgent watchlist order of him to the Bureau of Immigration.

“I am calling DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima and President Aquino to immediately instruct the immigration to place Mr. Arroyo in its watchlist,” Jinggoy said.

The senators at the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee second hearing agreed to summon Arroyo and her purported accountant, Rowena del Rosario to air their side on the issue scandal after businessman Archibald Legaspi Po, owner of Lion Air Inc. and Asian Spirit, manifested that two (2) of the helicopters bought by the PNP from Manila Aerospace Trading Corporation (Maptra) were actually owned by Arroyo.

The senators established that the choppers were actually owned by Arroyo; thus, the PNP are now in the limbo of controversy after they paid P105 million for the purchase of three brand new helicopters in 2009 but it turned out later that two of them were second hand.

Archibald Legaspi Po at the senate hearing.

Po admitted that in 2004, purchasing five helicopters for the former First Gentleman was mainly for use during the presidential campaign period and for the personal use of the Arroyos and their close allies.

“We have extensive verbal communication with Arroyo as regards the actual purchase, delivery and subsequent disposal of the helicopters,” Po admitted, saying that the expenses for the use and other costs related to the maintenance of the choppers were paid for in cash by Arroyo thru del Rosario. 

“In effect, Mr. Po admitted that he was the frontman of FG for this transaction and clearly established that it was FG who engineered the whole deal related to the PNP’s purchase of the helicopters,” Jinggoy said.

Other resource persons at the senate hearing.

“Po’s confirmation that he subsequently received a call from Arroyo after the controversy broke out and before Po was summoned to testify by the Senate, further proved that Po is intimately connected with the former First Gentleman,” Jinggoy noted. 

“To tie up all the issues together and put a closure on this controversy, it is therefore imperative that Mr. Arroyo’s presence at the next hearing and the subsequent hearings that the Senate will schedule is assured,” the Senator said; thus, there is a pressing need to put them in the watchlist order of the immigration. (Jason de Asis)