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Proof is out there

EDITORIAL

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11/21/2007

Can there be any doubt that the contracts entered into by the Gloria government, such as the ZTE-National Broadband Network (NBN) project, along with the even bigger CyberEd project, are definitely corruption-ridden, marked as they are with, to use the World Bank (WB) term, “collusion” and “excessive pricing?”

It is no longer the opposition-dominated Senate saying that these Gloria projects are anomalous and grossly overpriced, but the WB saying it, which was the reason the lender stopped the P21.5 billion in funding for road projects in the country.

So what do Gloria and her Malacañang do?

The usual, with Malacañang officials saying the concerned government agencies will be looking into concerns of the WB over these alleged anomalies in the projects, with Cabinet Secretary Ricardo Saludo pronouncing that the administration supports WB’s efforts to curb corruption, and ensure transparency in the implementation of its projects in the Philippines.

Cerge Remonde, director general of the Presidential Management Staff, chimed in to state that Gloria has already created the “pro-performance group” which will ensure the transparency and efficiency of road and other infrastructure projects.

The pro-performance group, which is headed by Remonde, was formed in September at the height of the controversy surrounding the $329.48-million ZTE-NBN project.

Given the track record of this Palace pro-performance group, it is clear that nothing, but nothing, is expected to come out — transparency-wise, especially in corrupt activities.

The fact that this group has done nothing by way of ensuring transparency in the ZTE-NBN project already points to its inability and ineptitude in such matters.

Just what has happened by way of action by the Palace in the ZTE-NBN controversy, if not by stonewalling the Senate probe and ensuring that those who were involved in the project, such as the Neda director general, Romulo Neri, are barred from testifying before the Senate on these matters, with the usual claim of executive privilege.

Yet it was clear, in the Senate hearings, that, despite Neri’s disclosure he had been offered a bribe by then Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr. to Gloria Arroyo herself, with her alleged to have responded that Neri can reject the bribe, but to approve the ZTE project anyway, and there is no doubt that the project was approved, the Palace made sure that nobody else in the Cabinet would appear before the Senate probe.

Even if Neri denies that he never said Gloria stated he should reject the bribe but approve the project anyway, it is evident that the project was approved by Neri. Is Neri then saying despite the offered bribe, which means he knew that the contract was graft-ridden, he went ahead to approve it, and even Gloria, knowing there was a P200-million bribe involved, didn’t question this since the project was approved?

If transparency is the goal of this Malacañang-created pro-performance group, then this is the worst group that can stem corruption in all these projects, precisely because there is absolutely no cooperation with the Senate in such probes brought about by the controversy of corruption-tainted projects as the Malacañang aim is to cover-up its criminal activities.

More to the point, these Cabinet secretaries, Remonde and Saludo included, are all robots of Gloria. They do as they are told and they are told by Gloria to cover-up the criminal deals. How then can this group, even if publicly created by Gloria to ensure transparency and effectiveness in projects, ever be counted on to do the job right?

Even today, after the WB moved to stop the funding of the road projects in the country, with yet another Chinese state firm, the reply from the Palace is that it will address the concerns of the WB since Malacañang is supportive of efforts to curb corruption and that this was a “wake-up” call.

Just how many wake-up calls does Malacañang need? Besides, it is evident that the usual claim of Gloria being supportive of moves to curb corruption is all lip service. What they preach, they do not pratice, that is for sure.

How can Malacañang claim to be supportive of efforts at curbing corruption when there is absolutely no cooperation at all in the Senate that is probing all these cases that reek of corruption?

The WB can forget steps that are promised to be taken by Gloria and her administration. She and her aides are too deep into corruption to even take a single step to end it all.