Senators debate over custody of ex-DPWH engineer Brice Hernandez

Senators on Wednesday were divided on where former Bulacan 1st district assistant engineer Brice Hernandez should be detained. 

According to Jaime Santos’ report in “24 Oras,” Hernandez was earlier brought to the Philippine National Police Custodial Center after he appealed before the House of Representatives not to be brought back to the Senate’s custody. This was after he tied Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Joel Villanueva to the alleged kickbacks in the flood control projects in Bulacan. 

However, some senators were not in favor of Hernandez’s request, including former Blue Ribbon Committee chairperson Rodante Marcoleta. 

“We’re not supposed to change the rule. I move Mr. President that he be back immediately to the custody of the Senate, not only because this is the condition that you gave them, but more importantly in order to erase the perception that if he is here in the Senate he is not safe. I will reject the idea that if he returns in the Senate, manganganib ang buhay niya [his life will be in danger],” said Marcoleta during the plenary. 

But Senate President Vicente Sotto III said that even if Hernandez is under PNP custody, the Senate security will still look after him. 

“I asked the Speaker [Martin Romualdez] what he plans because we cannot allow that. I said he’s under our custody and therefore he is in contempt in the Senate. ‘Pag iniwan namin sa inyo’, sabi ko, ‘ibig sabihin niyan para naming pinawalan.’ ['If we leave him to you,' I said, 'that would mean that we had let him go.'] What I did was I asked the Sergeant at Arms to bring Mr. Hernandez to the PNP custodial center and that is where he is now. Still under the care of the OSAA [Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate],” he said. 

For its part, the Senate minority bloc felt that the lower chamber had the upper hand in the matter. The plenary session was suspended due to the heated discussion, the report said. 

But even with the resumption of the session, the debates continued. In the end, Estrada motioned to transfer Hernandez to the Pasay City Jail, which was agreed upon by Senate Majority Leader Migz Zubiri. 

Sotto approved the motion after no senator objected.

Meanwhile, House Committee on Infrastructure co-chairperson Terry Ridon said they are concerned about the transfer of Hernandez, saying that he would be safer under the Senate’s custody, according to the report. 

On the other hand, new Senate Blue Ribbon Committee chairperson Panfilo Lacson sought an internal cleansing of the panel after one of its staff members, Beng Ramos, was tagged in the anomalous flood projects. 

“Since I am not sure if there is only one Beng Ramos in the Blue Ribbon Committee which I was just elected by my peers to chair, just like DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon, maybe I also need to do a simultaneous internal cleansing while buckling down to work,” he said. 

Hernandez earlier tagged Ramos as a staffer of Estrada. But the latter denied the allegations. 

“Wala akong staff o consultant na Beng Ramos. No such person has ever been employed much less authorized to use my name or act on my behalf,” said Estrada. 

But added that that a certain Beng Ramos is a staff member of the Blue Ribbon panel and a girlfriend of one of his staffers. — Vince Angelo Ferreras/BM, GMA Integrated News