Napoles to tell all on pork scam – Aguirre

ALLEGED pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim- Napoles is ready to “tell all” about the multibillion-peso fund diversion scheme, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre 2nd said on Tuesday, following the former’s temporary admission to the government’s Witness Protection Program (WPP).

- poles two months ago when she offered to make a tell-all testimony about the alleged misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).

“We had a face-to-face. She told me, ‘I’m going to tell all, all those involved in the PDAF scam, I will tell everything,’” Aguirre told reporters.

But if Napoles reneges on her commitment, her admission to the WPP would be revoked, he said.

“Of course. That’s why we’re placing her under WPP, she said she will tell all. We are expecting that,” he said.

The Justice chief said Napoles’ relatives Department of Justice (DoJ) about her

willingness to turn state witness.

“Janet Napoles, through her relatives and through her lawyer, approached the Department of Justice saying that Janet Napoles is now ready to tell all, to tell everything that she knows about the PDAF scam,” Aguirre said.

“Initially, she said she’s going and she requested that she be put in provisional coverage of WPP. We agreed to it,” he added.

Meeting confirmed

Aguirre and Executive Secretary Medialdea were reported to have met with Napoles’ lead counsel, last month.

Medialdea met with David but denied any irregularity in the meeting, saying Napoles’ lawyer merely sought an “opinion,” not legal advice, about the proposed jail transfer of his client.

“I said to the lawyer, it is your duty to get Janet Napoles out of Taguig jail and you should file appropriate motion before the division of the Sandiganbayan,” he said.

Aguirre said David went to the Palace to ask Medialdea to reverse his opinion on the jail transfer.

But the Justice secretary said he and Medialdea shared the same opinion.

“He (Medialdea) was asked by Attorney David if he could overrule me, he said could not because he has the same opinion as mine,” Aguirre said.

Aguirre also said he was willing to study the coverage of the WPP

Medialdea in an earlier statement did not say whether there was a Palace meeting with David and Aguirre. Instead, the Executive secretary denied giving legal advice to Napoles’ counsel.

“Why would I give a legal advice to a lawyer for his client? If Medialdea said in statement sent to the media.

Despite the apparent involve - President had no hand in dealing with the case of Napoles, including her provisional entry to the WPP.

During the same news conference, Palace spokesman Harry Roque said the President was not in the habit of micromanagement and would leave the matter to Aguirre.

“The President does not micromanage. He will allow the line agencies to perform their duties according to the law. He will reserve, of course, exercise supervision and control if need be but right now it’s a provisional coverage to the WPP, it is for the purpose of examining should in fact be discharged from any case,” he said.

“At this point, the President need not do anything, he trusts Secretary Aguirre is doing the right thing,” Roque added.

David earlier claimed that Medi jail transfer before the Sandiganbayan which his camp followed last Friday.

He originally wanted to rush Napoles’ transfer to another cell because of alleged threats to her life.

Napoles is facing a string of plunder and graft cases before the anti-graft court over allegations that her non-government organizations received millions of pesos from the PDAF Fund entitlements of several lawmakers in exchange for ghost projects.

‘Unlawful interference’

Representatives Edcel Lagman of Albay, Tomasito Villarin of Akbayan party-list and said the meeting between Aguirre, Medialdea unlawful interference in the P10billion PDAF cases.

“This move discredits the statement of the Palace that it is not interfering on the Napoles case and an admission on the part of the Justice secretary that he has no authority to put anyone under the government’s Witness Protection Program,” Lagman told reporters.

He cited Section 17 of Rule 119 of the Rules of Court on criminal procedure and Section 10 of the Witness Protection, Security and “upon motion of the prosecution before resting its case, the court may direct one or more of the accused to be discharged with their consent so that they may be witnesses for the state and when accused does not appear to be the most guilty.”

“It is the special prosecutor of who will initially determine become a state witness. Upon motion of the prosecutor, the Sandiganbayan has the jurisdiction to decide whether or not to discharge Napoles as state witness. In either case, Aguirre has neither jurisdiction nor authority to intervene in the process of discharging an accused to become a state witness,” Lagman pointed out.

Akbayan Rep. Tomasito Villarin said: “The Justice Secretary was too quick to wash his hands off the dismissal of drug charges versus self-confessed drug Kerwin Espinosa and Peter Lim apparently because he is so busy talking to Napoles and her lawyers. Justice Secretary Aguirre should resign.”

Magdalo party- list Rep. Gary Alejano said Aguirre was being used by the government to run after political enemies.