TAKE it from a confessed gambler.

Newly installed Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella is a "big-time" gambler, who has played with Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson and Caloocan Rep. Luis Asistio in the state-run Casino Filipino and in Las Vegas, Nevada.

This was disclosed yesterday by Singson, whose allegations that President Estrada received more than P500 million in "jueteng" payoffs and tobacco tax kickbacks led to the President’s impeachment.

"We were together often. He’s also big time," Singson said of Fuentebella, confirming reports that the Speaker was a frequent casino player.

Singson said he was not surprised that Fuentebella, 55, emerged as Speaker owing to his "closeness" to former senator and now Ambassador to the United States Ernesto Maceda, a known political strategist of Mr. Estrada.

Fuentebella was catapulted to the fourth-highest post in the land on Nov. 13 when legislators disgruntled with the leadership of Manuel Villar voted 114-93 for the new speaker. It was on that day that Villar hastened the transmittal of the impeachment complaint against Mr. Estrada to the Senate.

What paved the way for Fuentebella’s assumption to power was the alliance of the 14-member Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) with the much larger Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP) and other parties under the Lapian ng Masang Pilipino (LAMP).

Maceda is president of the NPC, to which Fuentebella belongs, while Mr. Estrada’s friend, businessman Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco, is chair.

Members of the House who voted for Fuentebella allegedly received "gifts" from Cojuangco through a Leyte legislator.

Singson said he, Fuentebella, Asistio and Maceda often played together at the Casino Filipino in the Heritage Hotel in Pasay City and in Holiday Inn in Manila.

"He was often with Asistio and Maceda," said Singson, himself a known habitue of the two casinos run by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

Maceda reportedly maneuvered the revamp in the Senate and in the House following the resignation of Senate President Franklin Drilon and Villar from the LAMP coalition.

He recently announced that he was quitting as ambassador to US and said he would return to become Mr. Estrada’s "crisis manager."

Sources said Fuentebella was among those who played at a casino in Las Vegas during the President’s trip to the US on Sept. 4 to attend the United Nations World Leaders Summit in New York.

This was confirmed by Singson, who said Mr. Estrada even handed out $5,000 as playing money to each of the congressmen, including Fuentebella.

Singson said he, Fuentebella and other members of the presidential party played at the Paris Hotel Casino in Las Vegas.

Other sources from LAMP said Fuentebella incurred debts of about $500,000 (P25 million at current exchange rates) with the casino.

But Singson could not confirm this. "I don’t know," the governor said.

Singson revealed that he, Fuentebella and Asistio were part of Mr. Estrada’s "advanced party" during his trips abroad.

Departure records earlier obtained by the Inquirer from the Bureau of Immigration showed that Fuentebella and Asistio were with Mr. Estrada on Philippine Airlines Flight PR-100, which left for the US on July 24.

Immigration records showed that Asistio returned to Manila on Aug. 5 on PAL Flight PR-100. There was no record of Fuentebella’s arrival.

Congress was already in session when Fuentebella and Asistio joined Mr. Estrada in the US.

Other sources described Fuentebella as a "sidekick" of Asistio, another staunch supporter of Mr. Estrada, who also belonged to the "midnight Cabinet" in Malacañang.

Singson, who was once in Mr. Estrada’s inner circle of friends, said he often saw Fuentebella at the presidential palace even before the "Juetengate" scandal exploded.

Singson’s name cropped up in 1998 when the Inquirer ran a series on the Pagcor practice of granting credit lines running to millions of pesos to favored players like Charlie "Atong" Ang, fugitive businessman Mark Jimenez and Asistio.

Pagcor sources then told the Inquirer that Singson was a fixture at the Casino Filipino, along with Asistio and Maceda. Singson has not denied being a gambler himself.

Even Mr. Estrada himself was caught on security video playing baccarat with Ang at a VIP room of the Heritage casino. The tape was given to former sweepstakes chair Manuel Morato, then a presidential aspirant, who, in turn, leaked the footage to the media.

The source of the tape, former Pagcor worker Edgardo Bentain, has been missing since January 1999, when he was last seen at the vicinity of the Casino Filipino Silahis on Roxas Boulevard.

There is also talk in the House of Representatives that Fuentebella is a gambler.

A colleague said Fuentebella was irked when the controversial Omnibus Power Bill was sharply criticized on the floor. Fuentebella was the principal author of the measure, which the House approved allegedly after legislators had received payoffs.

Critics had said the bill would saddle taxpayers with P725 billion in debts once the National Power Corp. is privatized.

A lawmaker, who was among the critics, was approached by a colleague, who said Fuentebella was doubly irked because the latter had lost millions of pesos days before.

"That information was relayed to me voluntarily, without any prompting," said the lawmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Asistio only has high regard for Fuentebella.

"He is a speaker for everybody. He’s not particular with political affiliations. He just gets the job done," Asistio told the Inquirer.

Having known Fuentebella over the last 15 years, Asistio said the Speaker was "good, loyal, fair, and a true friend."

"He is not like Villar who is boastful. Fuentebella is very accommodating and approachable. Younger congressmen can always go to him for help," the Caloocan congressman said.

"Now, we know that we have a Speaker who will represent all other members of the House," he added.

During Congress sessions, Asistio said Fuentebella would often encourage neophyte representatives to approach the podium and express their opinion.

"Fuentebella is like a big brother to them. A veteran legislator, he teaches and guides younger congressmen," he said.

To his supporters and friends in the third district of Camarines Sur, especially his townmates in Goa, Fuentebella’s election as Speaker is a cause for great jubilation.

But to some bigwigs in the province, like Representatives James Jacob and Salvio Fortuno and Gov. Luis R. Villafuerte, who are his political opponents, it is a sad development.

Fuentebella has received recognition for his work. Just this year, he received the National Electrification Champion Award.

He was also named Outstanding Public Servant of the Year by the National Media Statistics Research News Publication.

The Congress Magazine named him Outstanding Congressman (11th Congress) while the Asosasyon ng Kumentarista at Anawnser ng Pilipinas named him the Outstanding Congressman in Region 5.

Fuentebella graduated among the top 10 of his law class in the University of the Philippines in March 1970.

While still studying, he worked as a confidential assistant and field investigator of the Commission on Appointments from 1963 to 1972.

He was admitted to the Philippine Bar in March 1971 and to the New York State Bar in December 1984.

He is a member of the New York State Bar Association, American Bar Association and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

In 1971, he became a law partner in the Prita Law office and became a senior partner from 1973 to 1974.

In 1978, he became an assemblyman in the defunct Batasang Pambansa. He served up to 1984 when he became the general counsel of Bancom Realty Corp.

The new Speaker was an assistant to the Office of the President from Jan. 7 to Feb. 22, 1986.

He was a consultant of the Land Bank of the Philippines, director of the Land Bank Insurance Brokerage and Land Bank Leasing Brokerage, and member of the executive committee of the Land Bank Leasing Corp.

Fuentebella headed the Philippine delegation to the 100th Inter-Parliamentary Conference in Moscow on Sept. 6-12, and was a delegate to the 19th Annual UN Parliamentary Forum.

Before he was elected Speaker, he was the chair of the House committee on energy chair, vice chair of the committee on appropriations, and a member of the committees on ways and means, public works and highways, transportation and communication, trade and industry, games and amusement, accounts and legislative franchises.

Born Oct. 29, 1945 in Goa, Camarines Sur, Fuentebella is the son of former congressman and Camarines Sur Gov. Felix A. Fuentebella. He is married to Evelyn Y. Buquid.
With a report from Floreño G. Solmirano, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau