On direct examination by defense lawyer Jose Flaminiano, Angara narrated some of the incidents that transpired prior to Singson’s Oct. 9, 2000 exposé on Estrada’s alleged receipt of jueteng (illegal numbers game) bribe money and other illegal activities during his 31-month presidency.
Angara was a member of Estrada’s Cabinet, initially as Agriculture Secretary and for a while as Executive Secretary.
He said that sometime in September 2000, Singson asked him to convince Estrada not to give the franchise of Bingo-2 Ball in Ilocos Sur to his cousin Rep. Eric Singson, who is his political enemy.
Angara said Singson traveled all the way to his farm in Nasugbu, Batangas to make the request. Although he could not recall the exact date of Singson’s visit, Angara said it happened on a Sunday.
He said he could not forget that incident because Singson arrived at his farm while blessing ceremonies for the Ifugao house he bought in Banawe were ongoing.
He recalled that Singson even observed the ceremonies and stayed there for more or less an hour.
"He said he wanted to make a request. He wanted me to talk to President Estrada about the Bingo-2 Ball game franchise," Angara said referring to Singson. "Frankly, I did not know at that time what the Bingo-2 Ball was."
Angara said Singson was complaining about the awarding of the Bingo 2Ball franchise to his political enemies and for that, his supporters were asking him how and why it happened.
"He (Singson) wanted me to talk to President Estrada to give it (Bingo-2 Ball) to him and not to his political opponents. He said that if President Estrada can’t give it to him, wag na lang ang Bingo-2 Ball sa Ilocos," Angara said.
On that same day, Angara said he immediately informed Estrada about his meeting with Singson.
"I told him that Governor Singson even mentioned a list of jueteng tables," Angara said, apparently referring to Singson’s jueteng ledger, in which the jueteng bribes he alleged collected from gambling operators and remitted to Estrada were recorded.
Angara said Estrada denied being a recipient of any payoffs.
"I have nothing to do with Bingo-2 Ball. That is Atong Ang’s jurisdiction," Angara quoted the former President as saying. Bingo 2-Ball was Charlie "Atong" Ang’s brainchild when he was consultant of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor).
The next day, Angara said he relayed to Singson the conversation he had with Estrada.
"I told Governor Singson exactly the substance of the conversation I had with President Estrada," he continued.
During that meeting, Angara said Singson also asked him if he can talk to Ang about the matter and he replied, "I don’t know Atong Ang."
Although he does not personally knew Ang, he still talked to the businessman.
He said Ang told him that he would study the matter and he would have to consult Pagcor.
On the same month, Angara said he left for a ministerial meeting in Canada but before leaving, he called Singson to remind Ang about the matter. "When I left, I did not know what happened," he added.
Flaminiano then asked the witness about his reaction to an earlier statement of Singson before the court quoting Angara as saying, "Grabe ito. ‘Wag kang lumabas, ako nang bahala. Baka kaming mga Cabinet members maapektuhan."
"I never said that, I deny having said that. Of course, when he said the list contains the name of President Estrada, I think it’s a very serious allegation. I may have said ‘grabe ito’ but I never said the words you have quoted," Angara replied.
On cross-examination, the Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio tried to establish Angara’s bias in favor of Estrada.
Villa-Ignacio noted that Angara was Estrada’s running mate during the 1998 national elections where Estrada won as president and Angara lost to Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in the vice-presidential race.
He also cited Angara being a member of the minority bloc in the Senate, along with Estrada’s wife and son, Senators Loi and Jinggoy Estrada.
But Angara countered Villa-Ignacio’s insinuation. "I’ve been trying to be as impartial and objective as possible to tell the truth. I will never, never be bias."
Asked by Villa-Ignacio if he informed Estrada that the allegation of Singson that he was receiving jueteng bribes constitutes an impeachable offense, Angara said, "I said that to him. If it were true, that’s an impeachable offense. But he denied receiving any jueteng money."
