Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III and Senate Deputy Minority Leader Rodante Marcoleta engaged in a heated exchange over the detention transfer of former DPWH Bulacan 1st District Engineer Brice Ericson Hernandez to the PNP Custodial Center yesterday.
Sotto explained that he and House Speaker Martin Romualdez agreed to move Hernandez to the PNP facility after the engineer requested not to be returned to the Senate, citing fears for his safety.
It can be recalled that during a House Committee on Infrastructure hearing, Hernandez implicated Senate Deputy Majority Leader Joel Villanueva and Senator Jinggoy Estrada in receiving alleged kickbacks from anomalous flood control projects.
“Speaker Martin Romualdez called me and said that their committee was allowing Mr. Hernandez to remain in the House of Representatives and that he was requesting not be returned back to the Senate because of some fear for his life,” Sotto said.
He added: “I asked the Speaker what he plans because we cannot allow that… he is under our custody and therefore he is in contempt in the Senate, pag iniwan namin sa inyo sabi ko para naming pinawalan.”
Sotto emphasized that although Hernandez is now detained at the PNP Custodial Center, the Senate still holds custody over him. The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee had earlier cited Hernandez for contempt.
Marcoleta, a former Blue Ribbon chair, objected to Sotto’s decision and moved to have Hernandez returned to Senate custody.
“Not only because this is the condition that you gave him (Romualdez), 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 he be returned in the Senate, manganganib ang buhay niya,” Marcoleta said.
The exchange between Sotto and Marcoleta grew tense, with Marcoleta questioning Sotto’s authority and warning that the Senate’s investigation was being undermined.
In the end, the Senate decided to transfer Hernandez to Pasay City Jail.