They're compromising democracy

Senators Cayetano and Arroyo said they lost interest in the ZTE deal probe because "it has already been overtaken by events" (read: GMA declaring that the deal is dead). What events are these two gentlemen talking about?

Have they investigated the extent of corruption behind this deal? Have they heard the side of the Chinese ZTE officials who may have been victimized by government officials like Abalos? Have they even investigated the alleged complicity of other officials in the Arroyo administration? Up to what extent do government officials interfere with the affairs of foreign companies, especially in the granting of permits, projects, etc.?

Cayetano and Arroyo are missing the point of it all---the question that should be answered is this--the issue of morality and graft and corruption.

How many other foreign companies who set up shop here in the Philippines experienced the same kind of "treatment" some government officials accorded to ZTE? How many cases of extortion activities involving foreign companies and government officials went thru unnoticed? Is'nt interesting to know how many companies set up shop in the Philippines using the influence so to speak of the former Comelec head?

The reason why we need to know is the lingering perception by the business community that the business environment especially involving government transactions are not above board. That the environment itself is really not ready for business.

Maybe Cayetano and Arroyo forgot that they're there to know the truth. That the reason why people voted for them is the trust and confidence of the people in their abilities to dig deeper to protect the interests of the masses?

I know Cayetano. During our university days, we fought in different sides of the fence. He's a known social democratic leader. He was'nt admirable then, compared with Mike Defensor or even Bong Bongolan. However, my admiration with him slowly took shape when he bravely went against his ninong (FG) and exposed the anomalies of this administration. Now, I felt used. Cayetano, like all other trapos in there at the Senate, just used the people for their political ambition. If a guy like Cayetano can be influenced by Razon, the Palace and their factotums, then, whom do we place our hopes from here?

Even the alleged idealist senator Trillianes was silent all throughout the hearings. What are they doing?

The hearings should push through for three reasons: First, we need to know what measures are still needed to further cleanse government processes. Second, we need to know if we need a law that would penalize such personalities as FG who uses a meta-position to court favours and third, we need to know if a law should be made to protect foreign companies from government predators who use their posts to pressure and bribe them for the grant of projects.

In this era of globalization, perceptions of corruption lessens the attractiveness of an economy in the eyes of a potential foreign investor. We should level the playing field. Senators should not be afraid of touching a raw nerve of any body, even a bigtime shipping tycoon like Razon. They are not accountable to him, nor the palace nor any Pontius Pilate. They owe whatever status they have to the people whom they vowed to serve with all honesty and integrity.

Otherwise, whatever independence they have will always be in question and compromises like these compromise democracy.

NBN deal probe in limbo?
Tycoon said to be meddling in investigation

By Gil C. Cabacungan Jr., Dona Pazzibugan, Christine Avendaño
Inquirer
Last updated 02:34am (Mla time) 10/04/2007
Most Read
View the NBN contract and related documents


MANILA, Philippines -- The Senate probe of the $329-million contract for the National Broadband Network (NBN) project is in limbo amid allegations that Malacañang and a “powerful businessman” have allegedly “co-opted” the blue ribbon committee chaired by Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano.

Since the Senate wrapped up the fourth hearing on the deal on Thursday, Cayetano has not set a definite date for the next hearing.

The Senate is set to go on a month-long recess this month and many senators are going on vacation.

In a privilege speech Wednesday, Sen. Jamby Madrigal said: “We find it odd and disturbing that no hearings are scheduled this week when we have been previously advised that the hearings will be conducted before the Senate goes on a break.”

Madrigal said she received information that “the blue ribbon committee agreed to suspend indefinitely the conduct of the hearings upon the request of a powerful businessman and through the intervention of the Senate President himself.”

Madrigal said she came out with this information “rather than engage in political biting” to ask Cayetano “to explain the sudden impasse.”

At a press conference, Cayetano denied that he suspended the hearings.

Questions exhausted

Cayetano claimed that the Senate had “exhausted all questions” in the past hearings and that the hearings had become long-winded.

But asked how soon the public would see another hearing, Cayetano could not give a specific date.

Aside from admitting that he knew as early as last week that there would be no hearings this week, Cayetano said there would also be no hearings for the next 10 to 14 days after the Senate goes into recess and the technical working group (TWG) takes over the investigation.

Cayetano said that it would still depend on the TWG whether there would be a need for a hearing during the break.

Villar: Probe to continue

But Senate President Manuel Villar and heads of key committees are determined to see the investigation through.

“I will still push for a closure on this controversy. The investigation should be concluded with legislation that will make transactions of this nature transparent and open for public scrutiny,” Villar said.

But some senators said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s decision to cancel the NBN deal with China’s ZTE Corp. had rendered the inquiry moot.

Ms Arroyo, who met Chinese President Hu Jintao in Shanghai on Tuesday, said he had expressed understanding after she explained that the deal had to be canceled.

Culprits who nearly got away

Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan insisted on continuing the inquiry into the deal, which has been marred by allegations of overpricing and tainted with bribery offers.

“We have succeeded in preventing what appeared to be another billion-peso white elephant in the making. Still we need to shed light on who the real culprits are, who nearly got away with this anomalous transaction,” Pangilinan said.

He said there was a need for the public to know what Ms Arroyo did, if any, when she was informed of the P200-million bribe offered early this year to Romulo Neri, then director general of the National Economic and Development Authority.

But it doesn’t seem likely that Malacañang will allow its officials, including Neri, to appear again at the Senate inquiry now that the ZTE deal has been scrapped.

Sidestepped

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said he personally did not see why the Senate should continue its inquiry.

Noting what his lawyer-friends had told him, Ermita said the purpose of the hearing had been “sidestepped” by the cancellation of the ZTE deal and by the resignation of Benjamin Abalos Jr. as chair of the Commission on Elections.

Abalos has been accused of brokering the deal in exchange for commissions.

“If the contract is canceled, then I don’t see what else … would the committee on trade wish to look into,” Ermita said.

Arroyo’s political instinct

Ermita said the President’s “political instinct” could have driven her to decide to scrap the ZTE deal.

House Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., who introduced the resolution calling for an inquiry into the NBN deal, believed Ms Arroyo canceled the contract to deflect public dissatisfaction and to persuade the Senate to end its probe.

“There is no closure on questionable deals until the questions are answered and the truth is out,” Pimentel said.

It was during the Senate hearings on the deal that Abalos, then Comelec chair, was accused of offering bribes to Neri and Jose “Joey” de Venecia III.

De Venecia said Abalos had offered him $10 million so his company would withdraw its unsolicited proposal to undertake the NBN project.

Abalos has denied Neri and De Venecia’s allegations.

He resigned his Comelec post on Monday in the wake of an impeachment complaint filed against him.

There were also allegations that Ms Arroyo’s husband tried to bully De Venecia to “back off” from the project.

Tighten procurement law

One of the co-chairs of the inquiry, Sen. Manuel Roxas II, said the inquiry would also zero in on ways to tighten the procurement law so that all government projects have to go through public bidding and check and balance.

“This project should never have been started nor approved in the first place,” said Roxas, trade and commerce committee chair.

“We need to tighten the approval process for foreign-aided and -funded projects to protect the people’s money, and prevent this politico-diplomatic fiasco from ever happening again,” Roxas said.

Overtaken by events

Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Joker Arroyo, who belong to the administration bloc, said the cancellation of the ZTE contract rendered the Senate inquiry “moot.”

Enrile said the Senate could let public prosecutors handle the investigation of the bribery and corruption charges.

Senator Arroyo said the investigation had been overtaken by events. “I think we should wrap this up already so the committee report can be prepared … I’ve lost interest in this because it’s been overtaken by events,” he said.

But Arroyo said he would pursue his ethics complaints against certain senators who leaked the details of the Sept. 26 closed-door executive session to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. [The Inquirer report did not say that its four sources were senators. There were other people inside the room where the senators held their executive session on Sept. 27.]

Multi-sectoral groups

Outside the Senate, lawyer Harry Roque and members of multi-sectoral groups vowed to pursue charges against government officials whom they believe must be held culpable for violations of the code of conduct for public servants and for plunder despite the shelving of the NBN deal.

“This is far from having a closure,” Roque told the Inquirer.

He said there were violations committed even if the deal had been shelved. With reports from Christian V. Esguerra and Jeannette I. Andrade