Lozada nixes DOJ Witness Protection Program

Senate witness Rodolfo Noel Lozada on Monday said he favored being under the protection of his "friends" in the military than being placed under the Department of Justice's Witness Protection Program (WPP). "Baka sa kaibigan ko sa military magpapa-secure ako," he said when asked by Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan if he is willing to be placed under the WPP amid the reported threats in his life. Lozada added he will be more comfortable under the custody of Senate. Pangilinan said it is obvious that Lozada is apprehensive of being placed under the WPP because the President's alter-ego, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez, is the one implementing it. He said he filed a bill seeking to amend the existing witness protection law and include the establishment of a separate program for those testifying before Senate hearings in aid of legislation. Senate Bill 2081 seeks to address the urgent need to provide protection and security to witnesses and resource persons who attend investigations in aid of legislation conducted by the Congress of the Philippines. The senator wanted to give the Senate or the House of Representatives the authority to provide protection and assistance to witnesses in legislative investigations. He said Sec. 4 of Republic Act 6981 (the Witness Protection and Benefit Act) should be amended so as to "provide for a separate Witness Protection, Security and Benefit Program for the resource persons and/or witnesses in legislative investigations," and the Senate or the House of Representatives, as the case may be, shall be tasked to administer the same. "The program shall be implemented by the Senate or the House of Representatives independent from the Justice Department when it is apparent that the investigation might be prejudiced and/or when the safety of the witness might be jeopardized especially when the Justice department or higher officials are involved," the senator said. Under RA 6981, the Justice Department is the primary agency tasked to implement the same. Pangilinan said the broadened witness protection program may even encourage witnesses of anomalous transactions in governments to come out in the open and expose what they know. - Amita Legaspi, GMANews.TV