It was a conspiracy
to grab power,
Esperon
tells court martial
FORMER Armed Forces chief Gen. (ret.) Hermogenes Esperon, testifying for the prosecution, yesterday said the officers implicated in the alleged attempt to overthrow the Arroyo government in February 2006 conspired with other quarters to grab power.
Esperon detailed how they recovered a so-called Diamond statement from one of the accused, Maj. Jason Aquino, following the latter’s arrest in Quezon City on Feb. 27, 2006, days after the plot was supposed to have been consummated.
Aquino was the former operations officer of the First Scout Ranger Regiment when Esperon was still the commander of the Special Operations Command. Aquino was not present in yesterday’s hearing.
Esperon said among those seized from San Juan’s possession were several documents, including the Diamond statement which included three proclamations, one of which declares a state of emergency and suspends the operation of Congress. Defense lawyers blocked Esperon, now head of the Presidential Management Staff, from discussing the two other proclamations as these were not part of the pre-marked evidence submitted by the prosecution to the court.
The court is trying former Scout Ranger chief Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, and 27 other Army and Marine officers on a charge of mutiny. They allegedly plotted to join the anti-government protest on Feb. 25, 2006 and subsequently withdraw their support from President Arroyo.
Esperon and prosecution also touched on the arrest of Lt. Lawrence San Juan on Feb. 21, 2006. San Juan was one of the accused in the Oakwood mutiny of July 27, 2003 but he had escaped prior to the arrest.
Esperon said troops recovered from San Juan’s possession the minutes of the meeting between San Juan, retired military officers and communist leaders a day earlier formalizing an agreement to overthrow the Arroyo government.
The prosecution also played a videotape featuring Lim, flanked by several officers, calling President Arroyo a "bogus" president, taking her to task for poverty, corruption, injustice and the rigging of the 2004 elections, withdrawing support from her, and proposing the creation of a council –whose membership was not stated – to run the affairs of the government.
Esperon recounted a meeting with Lim, Col. Ariel Querubin and former Marine commandant Renato Miranda on Feb. 23, 2006 where they asked then AFP chief Gen. Generoso Senga to lead them in the march to Edsa. Esperon was then the Army chief.
When they declined to join the planned march, Esperon said the three told Senga: "Sir, hindi na kami makakaatras, mawawalan kami ng mukha." Esperon said he retorted, "Bakit kayo lang ba may mukha?"
Esperon identified Miranda –his batchmate at PMA Class of ’74 – Lim and Querubin as among those who plotted to overthrow the Arroyo government.
After the hearing, Esperon said he was happy that he was able to present his side. "I believe this is all part of my defense of democracy so it is not something hard to do, appearing here as a witness and I will come out with whatever is asked of me in this court and what I should be telling as a witness."
Lim took a swipe at Esperon, who was among the military generals who supposedly aided President Arroyo in rigging the results of the 2004 elections. "Ang masama nito, kung sino iyong mga kriminal noong 2004 elections, sila ang hindi nakulong. Kami ang mga nagbabayad sa mga kasalanan nila. Ang original sin dito is the 2004 electoral cheating. We are the ones paying the price for the crimes that they did," said Lim.
Lim said he would love to sit at the witness stand and tell the court what Esperon did not say during his testimony. "Sasabihin ko lahat iyong nangyari," he said, adding that Esperon withheld a lot of information. – Victor Reyes
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