Former Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II has denied coercing former BuCor officer-in-charge Rafael Ragos to execute statements and testimonies implicating Senator Leila de Lima in the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).
FORMER Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II has denied coercing former Bureau of Corrections officer-in-charge Rafael Ragos to execute statements and testimonies implicating Senator Leila de Lima in the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prisons when she was secretary of the Department of Justice.
“As to the motives of Mr. Ragos, we can only surmise. However, I know for a fact he was asking for payment of back pay during the time that he was not receiving his regular pay but he did not receive any,” the former justice secretary said. “Lastly, as a lawyer, allow me to state that it is a time-honored rule that retractions are unreliable unless backed up by incontrovertible evidence. As it is, devoid of any reliable back-up, the statement of Mr. Ragos is a worthless piece of paper,” Aguirre said.
Aguirre noted that Ragos testified under oath twice before the House of Representatives on De Lima’s involvement in the NBP illegal drug trade. “Evidently, whatever pressure that Mr. Ragos claimed I exerted on him is non-existent by the time of his testimony before the RTC,” Aguirre explained.