Abalos admits setting up DOTC-ZTE meeting

Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Benjamin Abalos on Wednesday admitted that he arranged for a meeting between Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza and officials of China's ZTE Corp. over the national broadband network (NBN) project. During the Senate hearing on the ZTE contract, Abalos said he set up the meeting upon the request of ZTE officials, noting that his participation in the NBN project is not part of his official function as head of the poll body. “(It has) no connection with my official function… I don’t know if you have been in the situation where you meet people along the way and become friends with some people," Abalos said, noting that in past interactions, he had developed friendships with officials of ZTE. “Officials of ZTE requested if they can have meeting with Sec. Mendoza. So I arranged a meeting between them," Abalos added. Abalos made the admission even as he vehemently denied brokering the $329.48-million deal between the government and China’s ZTE Corp. for the implementation of the NBN project. “I have nothing to broker... There’s no need to broker since it is the state will choose the contractor… I have never brokered for them (ZTE) as far as NBN is concerned," Abalos said. - GMANews.TV