(Eagle News) — A member of the Presidential Security Group who was once detailed as a close-in security of former Justice Secretary Leila De Lima testified before the House of Representatives on the alleged closeness and sweetness of De Lima to her former driver Ronnie Dayan.
Jonel Sanchez was the first witness presented at the House hearing Thursday morning by the Department of Justice. Sanchez chose to testify even if the House committee on justice decided against granting him immunity.
He said that he just wanted the truth to come out.
Sanchez detailed his observations on the close relationship between De Lima and Dayan. He said that Dayan was the one they called “Boss” and usually gives their food and monthly allowances, and that Dayan had been frequently sleeping at the house of De Lima, including her house in Bicol. They usually sleep in one room in out-of-town trips, he said.
He said that Dayan sleeps in the hotel room of the former Justice Secretary during these out-of-town trips.
He also observed the alleged unusual sweetness of the two. At one time, they were seen sharing boiled bananas.
“Nagsusubuan po sila ng nilagang saging na saba,” he said which elicited laughter from those attending the House hearing.
This was during stop-overs in their out-of-town trips.
He and even told the lawmakers that he had seen two sex videos of De Lima and Dayan.
He said it was De Lima’s driver, a certain Bantam, who called him sometime in 2012 to show him the alleged cellphone of Dayan whom he had left in the car. They were then inside the Malacanang compound. Bantam played the two sex videos from Dayan’s cellphone.
He then detailed what he had seen in the two alleged sex videos of De Lima and Dayan.
De Lima would also buy gifts and personal things to Dayan, according to Sanchez.
Sanchez said the usual terms of endearment he hears from De Lima and Dayan were “love” and “babes”
Sometime in 2015, Sanchez said that he also noticed that De Lima’s attention seem to have shifted to a certain Warren Cristobal, a motorcycle rider of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA)
He said Dayan became jealous of Cristobal. In March 2015, Dayan was removed by De Lima, thereafter the justice secretary and Cristobal’s closeness and sweetness became more noticeable, Sanchez recounted.
“Kapansin-pansin din ang closeness ni Warren Cristobal at SOJ kung kaya’t nagdududa na kami na may special na relasyon ang dalawa,” he said.
Sanchez said that he had also been given money by Reynante Diaz, the talent manager of NBP inmate Herbert Colanggo.
In his affidavit, Sanchez admitted that he received P15,000 three times from Reynante Diaz.
Sanchez said that when his father suffered from a heart attack, he sought help from De Lima but was denied help at the time. He then sought help from other persons, including from Oriental Mindoro Rep. Alfonso Umali Jr. After learning this, De Lima removed him as one of her aides. (Eagle News Service)