Rodolfo Noel I. Lozada, Jr., CEO of the Philippine Forest Corporation

Philippine Forest Corporation

Philippine Forest Corporation is a Philippine government controlled corporation. It is under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources....

, surfaced at the La Salle Greenhills campus early morning today and implicated former Commission on Elections chair Benjamin Abalos Sr and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo

Jose Miguel Arroyo

Jose Miguel "Mike" Tuason Arroyo is a former First Gentleman of the Philippines. He is the husband of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the former President of the Philippines and the current Congresswoman of Pampanga 2nd District....

 in the anomalous ZTE deal.

Lozada is an electronics and communications engineer and former chief executive officer of the Philippine Forest Corporation who served as a technical consultant to former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri

Romulo Neri

Romulo Neri is a Filipino politician and former Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority , acting secretary of Department of Budget and Management , chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education and President of Social Security System under former President Gloria...

 on the national broadband project.

News reports last month referred to him as a 'secret witness' in the Senate inquiry on the ZTE deal exposed by Jose de Venecia III last year.

Lozada left the country hours before a January 30 Senate hearing he was supposed to attend. This prompted the senators to issue a warrant of arrest against him. As soon as he returned to the country, the Senate was not able to get him as he was taken away by suspected presidential guards. In a petition seeking his release filed before the Supreme Court, his wife Violeta said he was taken into police custody against his will.

A graduate of the University of Santo Tomas

University of Santo Tomas

The Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines , is a private Roman Catholic university run by the Order of Preachers in Manila. Founded on April 28, 1611 by archbishop of Manila Miguel de Benavides, it has the oldest extant university charter in the...

, he has a 20-year experience in executive and management positions in the private sector.

Lozada assumed the post of president and CEO of PhilForest, a corporate arm of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, in 2004. He directed the government's program for the propagation and commercial cultivation of tuba-tuba or jatropha plant, a source of biodiesel.

Lozada hails from Ligao City in Albay

Albay

Albay is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region in Luzon. Its capital is Legazpi City and the province borders Camarines Sur to the north and Sorsogon to the south. Also to the northeast is Lagonoy Gulf....

. He is a fan of the national hero, Jose Rizal

José Rizal

José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda , was a Filipino polymath, patriot and the most prominent advocate for reform in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. He is regarded as the foremost Filipino patriot and is listed as one of the national heroes of the Philippines by...

. He loves to read books, and his favorite is "The End of History and the Last Man" by Francis Fukuyama.

He is also a golfer, and plays in Wack-Wack at least once a week.

External links

• http://www.gmanews.tv/story/79596/Rodolfo-Noel-I--Lozada-Jr – GMA News Research
• Rodolfo Noel I. Lozada, Jr. – GMANews.TV