Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11) — A former employee accused his former boss, Siaton Mayor Fritz Diaz, of harassing him after a Senate panel suspended its hearing on the killing of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo on Wednesday.
As the inquiry resumed on Thursday, Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa read a letter from Erames Law Office, stating that Jerome Nalam was allegedly harassed by Mayor Diaz with “abusive utterances and malicious imputations, accompanied by inappropriate gestures” in a Senate hallway.
Lawyer Rosel Erames, who wrote the letter but did not personally witness the incident, requested the Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs for a copy of the surveillance footage.
“Sinugod ako ni Mayor Fritz, dinuro niya pa ako,” Nalam said of the incident. “Sabi niya kung sa Bisaya pa, ‘Nilampos mo pagpatay ni Degamo pero wa mo gud mo nilampos pagpatay nako.’ Grabe ning harassment para nako.”
[Translation: Mayor Fritz rushed to me and pointed at me. He said, “You succeeded in killing Degamo but you did not succeed in killing me.” This harassment is too much for me.]
“Very irresponsible action or gesture for a mayor. Mr. Chair, feeling ko no’ng nangyari ‘yon parang di ako safe [I felt at the time I was not safe],” he added.
“Totoo ‘yon, Mr. Chair, but the harassment is not true,” said Diaz, a nephew of the slain governor. “I approached him, nag-abot kami doon, nakita ko siya, parang lumuhod ako at sinabi ko sa kanya, ‘Napatay niyo si gov pero di niyo ako napatay.'”
[Translation: It’s true but the harassment is not. I approached him, I saw him, I looked him in the eye and told him, ‘You killed the governor but not me.'”]
After listening to the two versions, Dela Rosa told the sergeant-at-arms to probe the incident and asked the resource persons to not have contact with each other after the hearing.
Nalam and Kitty Torres, another former employee of the Degamos, accused the family of involvement in illegal activities during Wednesday’s hearing.
