NEWSFLASH

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DACERS ASKED TO COMMENT ON PRIEST'S EXPOSE

Manila, April 9, 2001 - The family of public relations man Salvador "Bubby" Dacer was asked yesterday to comment on the statements of a Parañaque priest over the possible knowledge of former President Ramos and his national security adviser Jose Almonte in Dacer's disappearance.

The opposition Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino said yesterday: "We appeal to the Dacer family to come out and confirm or deny Fr. (Gabriel) Baldostamon's statement. We understand the pain they must feel at the continued disappearance of their father, but they must come out in order to help shed light on this matter. Don't be afraid of Ramos and Almonte."

Fr. Baldostamon is the parish priest of the Our Lady of the Holy Rosary church in Sun Valley Subd. where the Dacer family lives.

He claimed to have heard Almonte "consoling" the Dacer family that should they recover or "arrange" for Dacer's release, they would spirit him out to the United States and make it appear that he was still missing.

Baldostamon said Almonte made the statement in a breakfast meeting with the Dacer family about 10 days after his disappearance.

"Did Almonte really say that?" the LDP asked. "If he did, he must explain his intentions for doing so and why did he sound as if he had contact with Dacer's abductors?"

The LDP said it is a "surprise" that Almonte has not even reacted to Baldostamon's claims.

Almonte earlier came out with a letter in which Dacer wrote apprehensions over drawing the ire of Joseph Estrada and former PNP chief Panfilo Lacson.

The LDP said the parish priest had no reason to lie when he bared his story, which was first brought public by Bishop Teodoro Bacani in his Today newspaper column last Thursday. The following day, Baldostamon confirmed the contents of Bacani's column.

It was also Bacani who first questioned Almonte's motive for coming up such statements before the Dacer family. Bacani also asked probers looking into the Dacer case to dig deeper into Baldostamon's statements.