- Advertisement -

Jude Josue Sabio

EDGAR Matobato continued his testimony in the Senate Justice Committee on Sept. 23, 2016.  In his questioning, Sen. Cayetano showed a CNN-Philippines interview of the relatives of Sali Makdum who claimed that  Matobato personally knew Sali Makdum with whom he was discussing a transaction for the sale of a land.  In fact, the Filipino wife of Makdum is the cousin of Matobato’s wife.  Matobato confirmed that he knew Makdum for three months.

- Advertisement -

Consistent with his  being a hitman, Matobato never asked questions about his targets. He just follows orders from his police handlers especially SPO4 Arthur Lascanas. According to Matobato’s further testimony on Sept. 23, 2016, Duterte treats Lascanas as a “brother.” This is in addition to  what he said on Sept. 15, 2016 that Lascanas is the most powerful policeman in Davao, before whom even police generals are obliged to pay homage.

In his initial testimony last Sept. 15, 2016, Matobato revealed for the first time the incident involving the abduction and killing of a certain Sali Makdum, saying that Makdum was an international terrorist. On Sept. 23, 2016, Matobato clarified that he did not personally know Makdum to be a terrorist. He was only told by Lascanas about it. In turn, that was what he told the committee.

In the Sept. 15, 2016 hearing, Sen. Lacson interjected that based on his search of the Google, no terrorist by the name of Sali Makdum appears.  His manifestation would naturally lead to the impression that there was no person in existence by the name of Sali Makdum, because, according to him, his name would surely be in the Google if he were an alleged international terrorist. But unfortunately, a staunch ally of Duterte, his losing vice presidential candidate, Sen. Cayetano, has himself confirmed the identity and existence of Sali Makdum when he displayed the CNN interview.

That Matobato simply heard from SPO4 Lascanas about Makdum’s being an international terrorist  does not mean that he is less credible. His statement that he heard SPO4 Lascanas telling him about it is an independently relevant statement, meaning that he is competent to testify on it, because he personally heard it. But whether or not what SPO4 Lascanas told him is true is an entirely different matter.

It could be that SPO4 Lascanas was just making up a story that Makdum is an international terrorist. Or it is possible that Makdum is really an international terrorist said to be involved in bombings, but his true identity is hidden in disguise. But that is beside the point. What matters is that his existence and identity as a living person then have already been confirmed. In other words, he existed as a person, which lends credence to Matobato’s earlier claim that his physical body was abducted and terminated by the DDS led by SPO4 Lascanas.

In his account, Matobato personally participated in this abduction and murder.  It was SPO4 Lascanas who allegedly ordered the hit, but in his testimony on Sept. 15, 2016, Matobato said that SPO4 Lascanas takes his orders from Duterte who formed and heads the DDS. Led by SPO4 Lascanas, his group allegedly snatched Makdum at a market in Samal, and brought him later to the PAOCTF office then headed by now PNP Director General de la Rosa. It was SPO4 Lascanas who directly talked to and dealt with de la Rosa at that time.

In the Sept. 15, 2016 hearing, de la Rosa claimed that he did not personally know Matobato. That is as it should be, because per Matobato’s account, he did  not talk personally to de la Rosa when they brought Makdum to him. That was not his role. He was just a simple illiterate assassin. That was the role of his superior SPO4 Lascanas. But he was present when SPO4 Lascanas and de la Rosa were talking to each other.   Later, Makdum was allegedly brought to the Laud quarry where he was killed in the usual way of DDS execution of garroting, slashing the neck and stabbing while being garroted.

What de la Rosa and SPO4 Lascana talked about is not clear. There was no questioning in the committee hearing about what was talked about during their conversation. What is certain is that de la Rosa and SPO4 Lascana personally talked in the presence of Matobato. But since it is established that Makdum was brought to de la Rosa then, it logically follows that Makdum was the topic of the discussion.

It is curious to note though that de la Rosa, in the Sept. 15, 2016 hearing, asserted that his PAOCTF then had no target by the name of Sali Makdum as an international terrorist. This appears to be an indication that Sali Makdum was not a terrorist after all, contrary to what SPO4 Lascanas had told Matobato. But even that could not destroy Matobato’s credibility, because what is important is the confirmed existence and identity of Makdum. Significant note should be taken that while de la Rosa claimed that his PAOCTF then had no Makdum as a target, he did not say that Makdum is fictitious.

The problem with a truthful witness is that as the grilling or questioning progresses, his answers can clarify, explain, amplify, and give further details on his narrative, thereby strengthening the proof. This is especially true with an intelligent witness. In contrast, it is very problematic with regard to an unintelligent witness. This is especially true with Matobato who finished Grade 1.

As evident during the hearing on Sept. 22, 2016, the communication gap was a nightmare to any lawyer presenting Matobato. The statement made by him with the NBI was in English. Hearing Sen. Cayetano read verbatim from portions of Matobato’s English affidavit, one could easily sense that it was made by someone who is highly educated, and presumably by a lawyer.  It is public knowledge that the agents of the NBI are mostly lawyers.

It is very absurb for the NBI to have prepared Matobato’s statement in English. Matobato speaks only the Bisayan dialect and Tagalog. Why the NBI made a lengthy affidavit in English for Matobato is, to put it bluntly, downright stupid. Just like Herbert Colanggo who is Grade 6, Matobato could stare at the English language before his eyes but could not understand any single word of it. There was no way that he could then have known what was written and could not have therefore sworn competently to the truth of what was stated.

Understandably, it was not unusual for Matobato to have been confused at times, if not many times. He was heard uttering “nalilito ako” when asked for  clarifications. Sen. Cayetano read out portions of Matobato’s English affidavit, but it was futile because Matobato did not understand a single word of it. The culprit behind this fiasco is the NBI.  They should not have made an English statement for Matobato. They could have made just a simple statement in Tagalog consistent with Matobato’s being just a Grade 1.

That is the problem in drafting affidavits. This is especially true where English is our national language taught and spoken in schools and universities, but among the poor like Matobato who are uneducated, English is not understood. There is a wide gap in communication between the educated and the poor. This happens in the courts all over the land. Poor litigants attend court hearings but they could not understand English spoken by lawyers and judges.

This is what is precisely happening in the Senate committee in the testimony of Matobato. This simple illiterate man is being grilled by English-speaking senators, a lot of them lawyers like Cayetano, Angara, Drilon, de Lima and Gordon. How could you expect a Grade 1 person like Matobato to fare in a debate or discussion with English-speaking senators? A person like Matobato has a short attention span and difficulty understanding things even in Tagalog. The only senator that comes close to the mental state of Matobato is Pacquiao. If all the senators were like Pacquiao, Matobato would have no difficulty at all.

Come to think of it, Matobato is just Grade 1 and presumably his mind is that of a Grade 1 pupil. As such, he can only engage in discussions fit for the mind of a Grade 1 student. In other words, he is a 56-year old man with the mind of a Grade 1 pupil. The Senate Committee should seek out a Grade 1 teacher to find out the extent of the mental competence of a man with a Grade 1 mental capacity facing a phalanx of English-speaking lawyers.

But to his credit, Matobato has come out strong even with his child-like mental capacity and his language handicap.    The grilling made by Duterte’s allies, especially Sen. Cayetano, has strengthened the narrative of Matobato.   This finds support in the Makdum incident which lends strong credence to the veracity and credibility of the narrative of Matobato, tending to show that he is telling the truth about all the criminal hits and activities carried out by the death squad allegedly on orders of Digong a.k.a. Charlie Mike.

(Jude Josue Sabio is a lawyer from Misamis Oriental.)

Disclaimer

Mindanao Gold Star Daily holds the copyrights of all articles and photos in perpetuity. Any unauthorized reproduction in any platform, electronic and hardcopy, shall be liable for copyright infringement under the Intellectual Property Rights Law of the Philippines.

- Advertisement -