Somebody behind Bantag?

By Herbert Vego

DOES Roy Mabasa believe that somebody “higher” could have influenced suspended Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director-General Gerald Bantag to order the October 3, 2022 murder of his elder brother, Perival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa?

“Maaring mayro’n pang nasa likod ni Bantag,” Mabasa answered ANC-TV host Karmina Constantino without naming name.

Bantag and BuCor Deputy Security Officer Ricardo Zulueta have been charged before the Department of Justice (DOJ) as principal masterminds in the murder of broadcaster Percy Lapid and of a “middle man” behind the gunman.

As to why Bantag is standing out among 160 “persons of interest” mentioned by the broadcaster in his “Lapid Fire” radio program (telecast worldwide via YouTube and Facebook), it’s because the latter had repeatedly alluded to his “anomalies” as BuCor head and to his “unexplained wealth consisting of a mansion and 11 high-end cars,” hence in violation of RA 6713 or “Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.”

Lapid would often hit “Digongniyo” for allowing China to occupy our territories in the West Philippine Sea.

Percy’s hard-hitting broadcasts have been video-recorded on YouTube; they are now among the materials replayed by enterprising vloggers.

Let us see what could have emboldened Bantag to “punish” Ka Percy.

Let us recall that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had preventively suspended Bantag and appointed Gen. Gregorio Catapang Jr. to take over. Catapang had served as the late former president Benigno Aquino III’s chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines from July 2014 to July 2015.

Hurt, Bantag warned the President, “Kailangan maging watchful ka, Mr. President. Baka ‘yan ang magiging downfall mo.”

He reminded BBM that as a member of the RAM (Reform the Armed Forces Movement), Catapang had helped oust his dad, Pres. Ferdinand Edralin Marcos Sr., via the 1986 EDSA Revolution.

Unfortunately for Bantag, his “banta” fell on deaf ears.  The younger Marcos probably knows that having an unblemished officer like Catapang in the military would compensate for his family’s losses.

If Rodrigo Duterte were still President, Bantag lamented, he would not be humiliated.

Yesterday, an anonymous informant wrote a message to this columnist, saying that Bantag was a classmate of one Marvin Marcos at the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA), Class 1996.

Why had not Pres. Marcos come to his rescue in the same way that former President Duterte had done to Marvin Marcos? Remember Marvin?

In an ABS-CBN report dated June 22, 2017, then Senator Antonio Trillanes revealed that the police officers working for the Davao Death Squad had sprung from the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) class of 1996.

It was then Supt. Marvin Marcos who led a team of 24 cops in raiding the Leyte sub-provincial jail on November 5, 2016. It was based on an intelligence report that a prisoner — Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. — was keeping shabu in his cell.

Espinosa and fellow inmate Raul Yap died in a subsequent “shootout” with them.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II initially claimed that the killing of Espinosa was “premeditated”. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Senate panel that investigated Espinosa’s death both tagged the killing as a “rubout.” The NBI, concluding that the gun used by Espinosa in the alleged shootout was “planted,” charged the police raiders with the crime of murder. The DOJ eventually downgraded the offense to homicide, thus allowing the accused to post bail.

Rogelio “Bato” dela Rosa, the Philippine National Police (PNP) chief, placed them under preventive suspension.

The case never prospered, what with then President Rodrigo Duterte issuing a “return to work” order.

In the case of Bantag, it was BBM who ordered his suspension.