The recantation by ex-Marine Orly Guteza of his statements about cash deliveries to former Speaker Martin Romualdez is not surprising, considering that he was identified as a “coached” witness during a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing last year, Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson said Thursday.
Lacson said Guteza’s backtracking was foreseeable after he was “coached” by Sen. Rodante Marcoleta during the hearing last Sept. 23 – and after some of the “Maleta boys” did the same earlier.
“Since on record naman sa hearing ng Blue Ribbon Committee na coached witness ni Sen. Marcoleta si Guteza at naka-live pa nga, hindi na surprising na babaliktad siya balang araw (Since it is on record that Marcoleta coached Guteza, it is not surprising that Guteza would backtrack on his claims someday),” he said.
“Naging ‘one dime a dozen’ na ang baliktaran ng testimonya ng mga ‘maleta boys’ kaya hindi na rin surprising na ang original ‘Maleta Boy’ a.k.a. Basura na si Orly Guteza ay bumaliktad na rin (The backtracking of the ‘maleta boys’ has become a dime a dozen so it’s not surprising that Guteza, the original ‘Maleta Boy’ a.k.a. Basura, followed suit),” he added.
Lacson said the case of Guteza and the other “Maleta boys” smacks of attempts to personally gain from their alleged involvement in the flood control mess.
“Sa lingguahe ng mga mandurugas, ‘lagareng hapon’ yata ang tawag nila diyan – doble-kita, or 40-40 vision (In the words of swindlers, it’s ‘lagareng hapon’ or ‘doble kita,’ or 40-40 vision),” he said.
Earlier, Lacson had noted that during the Blue Ribbon hearing which he chaired, Marcoleta was observed to be coaching Guteza by prompting him on what to say in Guteza’s affidavit.
Also, Lacson cited Senate CCTV records showing Guteza went to Marcoleta’s office, spending half an hour there, before appearing at the Blue Ribbon hearing.
Guteza, after a long absence, resurfaced and recanted his statements, adding Marcoleta and ex-Rep. Michael Defensor had him “testify” in exchange for money and scholarships for his children.
