The Lower House of the Philippine Congress summoned more individuals to be present during the next hearing on alleged illegal drug trade in the Bilibid.
After the first day of the hearing of the House of Representatives committee on justice where six witnesses faced the lawmakers, more individuals were summoned for the next hearing regarding the alleged illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison.
On Tuesday, high-profile inmates at the NBP were examined by Department of Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II and pointed Senator Leila de Lima as involved on the trade.
While the hearing was ongoing, the House of Representatives has summoned several individuals whose names were mentioned during a panel inquiry on the proliferation of illegal drugs at the national penitentiary.
During the hearing, the House justice committee approved subpoenas for Ronnie Dayan, the former driver of De Lima and former Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III.
Dayan is accused of being the link of the female Senator to drug lords inside the NBP while Baraan is accused of taking a share from drug lords operating in the prison.
Despite two more individuals were already summoned, Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano said subpoenas should also be issued to Former Bureau of Correction director Franklin Jesus Bucayu, Bilibid convict Jaybee Sebastian, Bilibid convict and former Superintendent Rafael Cardeno and former Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) executive director Reginald Villasanta.
According to Herbert Colanggo, Sebastian is the highest druglord in the prison.
“I would like to move that the following persons be invited to the next hearing considering that their names were mentioned in the testimony of the witnesses,” said Alejano.
“I mention Villasanta because he was the PAOC chief who was involved in the inter-agency operation that investigated drug in the NBP starting 2013,” Alejano added.
“I move he will be included because he will have direct knowledge on the issue of drug trade inside the NBP,” he said.
In response to the motion of Alejano, justice committee chair Rep. Reynaldo Umali told Alejano: “We would request the Department of Justice to facilitate this [with respect to Sebastian and Cardeno].”
“As to the two others [Villasanta and Bucayu], we will request that they be invited,” Umali added.
The committee chair added: “We will look at how this will roll out throughout the course of this hearing so we won’t waste the time of the people waiting for their turn.”
The hearing on Tuesday took almost six hours, where all the witnesses presented are all inmates in the national penitentiary.