Lozada hopes Neri will make complete ZTE deal testimony

By Malou Talosig-Bartolome, GMA News

Published February 10, 2008 7:56pm

- ZTE controversy timeline - Profile of Jose Miguel Tuason Arroyo - Profile of Romulo Neri - Profile of Benjamin S. Abalos - Ombudsman Gutierrez logs a record of going easy on Abalos, Comelec - Transcript of Lozadaâ€™s Senate testimony on ZTE mess

Rodolfo Noel Lozada Jr has no more details to add to his Senate testimony. But he hopes Romulo Neri will decide to complete his story on the controversial National Broadband Network project, which was linked to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo, and Benjamin Abalos, former chief of the Commission on Elections. "Sana samahan ako ni Secretary Neri sa katotohanan [I hope Secretary Neri would join me in telling the truth]," he told journalists from GMA and Inquirer in an interview on Saturday. Lozada pointed out that Neri, chairman of the Commission on Higher Education and he had been close friends for five years now. He said that even when the scandal on the government's NBN project with China's ZTE Corp. blew up last year, their friendship remained intact. Lozada used to work with Neri when he was director general of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA). Now he hopes he and Neri could remain friends despite his decision to testify at the Senate. He said he has "high regard" and "mutual respect" for Neri. That's why he hopes Neri will still come out and complete the story that he narrated to the Senate last Friday, February 8. Not a saint Lozada, former president of Philippine Forest Corp., said he had already bared everything that he knew about the NBN-ZTE deal and his purported graft practices at the PhilForest, thus he would have nothing more to add to his testimony on Monday.

He said he expected more dirty laundry would be dragged out on Monday by MalacaÃ±ang's "attack dogs." This was one of the factors he "grappled with his demons" on whether or not to testify in the Senate. "I was not a saint, I'm not clean, I do little things as well," Lozada said. "I was afraid they would come out with that (graft accusations)." Neri testified last year at the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on the transaction of Chinese firm ZTE Corp. for the installation of $329.48-million NBN project that would provide broadband Internet access all over the country. He said Abalos offered him a P200-million bribe, and that he informed President Arroyo about it. The President reportedly told Neri not to accept the bribe. Just a trailer Lozada thinks Neri has more details to divulge about the NBN-ZTE deal. These include, Lozada said, Neri's first-hand knowledge of Mrs Arroyo's instructions on the project. Mrs Arroyo is the chairperson of the NEDA Board, which reviewed ZTE's proposal for the NBN project. Lozada said the President's order for Neri to refuse the bribe was just a "trailer" to the saga of the Senate investigation. But it seems Neri is bothered that by telling everything to the Senate, he will cause the downfall of his boss, the President. "At least according to Secretary Neri, he feels that if he says it, he will blow the house down. Sa sarili n'yang pananaw, magkakagulo," Lozada said. He felt President Arroyo could have averted the overpriced ZTE-NBN deal. Lozada testified at the Senate on Friday that when he reviewed the NBN project, its cost was only $262 million. But he said that when the project was turned over to the Department of Transportation and Communications, the cost increased to $329 million. "I guess she could have done something like moderating the greed," Lozada said. Asked if the President had made efforts to moderate the greed, he just smiled and said: "Can I give you a pregnant smile?" Lozada is set to appear again on Monday, February 11, at the Senate during the resumption of the hearing on the NBN-ZTE deal. - GMANews.TV

Tags: ztecorp, broadbanddeal, rodolfolozadajr, romuloneri