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Thursday, September 20, 2007
Arroyo orders 3 Cabinet men to attend broadband deal probe
MANILA -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Wednesday directed the three Cabinet secretaries involved in the controversial National Broadband Network (NBN) deal to appear in Thursday’s Senate hearing on the project.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the Cabinet members who will be testifying before the Senate are Trade Secretary Peter Favila, Transportation Secretary Leandro Mendoza, and former planning secretary now Commission on Higher Education (Ched) chairman Romulo Neri.
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“The President would like to tell everybody that there's really nothing wrong with all these issues and the administration is willing to reveal all that it knows about the contract,” Ermita said.
He said the appearance of the Cabinet members in Thursday’s hearing would “clarify things that have come out so far” and “set the record straight about things that have been said.”
“If nothing comes out from our officials concerned, people might think that there are things that are being (kept),” he said.
However, Ermita refused to comment on the linking of First Gentleman Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo to the broadband deal.
Malacañang on Wednesday distributed a press release quoting Mendoza as saying the NBN deal is “above-board and is for the benefit of the Filipino people.”
Mendoza said businessman Jose “Joey” de Venecia III, son of House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr., was only criticizing the project because he lost in the bidding.
“I read the affidavit of Joey de Venecia and heard his testimony before the Senate. Neither changed my view that despite his well-rehearsed attempt at melodrama at the Senate, he is still a sore loser,” Mendoza was quoted as saying.
The NBN deal was supposed to develop a digital infrastructure to provide public access points for delivery of e-government services. It was supposed to exclusively cater to the needs of the National Government and the local government units in accordance with the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP 2004-2020).
Favila, for his part, said while Mendoza explains the nitty-gritty of the deal as head of the implementing agency, he would have to explain the bilateral trade relations part.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr., who allegedly acted as broker in the deal, will also attend the Senate hearing.
According to James Jimenez, spokesman for the Comelec, Abalos would attend the Senate hearing on the NBN deal so that the people would know the truth.
Chance encounter
Lawyer Jesus Santos, spokesman of Mr. Arroyo, said the First Gentleman did not intimidate de Venecia III, co-owner of Amsterdam Holdings Incorporated (AHI), into backing out of the broadband project.
Santos said the meeting that de Venecia III referred to was a “purely chance encounter” and the “first meeting” between Attorney Arroyo and the younger de Venecia.
He said the First Gentleman was in Wack-Wack Golf and Country Club to play golf when he overheard de Venecia III following up his project proposal with Mendoza.
He said Mr. Arroyo asked Mendoza who he was talking to and the transportation chief introduced the younger businessman.
When de Venecia III continued to follow up his proposal, Santos said, the First Gentleman reminded the businessman that he cannot be involved in any government transaction because he is the son of the Speaker. He said afterwards, Mr. Arroyo immediately joined his friends at another table.
According to Santos, de Venecia III might have been coached to link the First Gentleman to the deal. “Whatever his reason, I remain confident that the young de Venecia would eventually see the light and let the truth prevail,” he said.
Health reason
Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Sergio Antonio Apostol said the First Gentleman should not attend the Senate hearing even if subpoenaed because he cannot be cited for contempt if the reason for his absence is health-related.
“Definitely not. I think the doctors will not advise him to appear because they do not want him to undergo any stress. In fact that is what the doctors keep on emphasizing. He is recuperating. He should not be doing things which will be stressful,” Apostol said.
“Health reason is always a valid reason in all investigative bodies,” he said.
Vaudeville acts
President Arroyo, in her speech at the opening session of the Asia Policy Forum on Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Integration into Education at the Crowne Plaza, told her critics and the public to focus on things that matter most, like economic growth.
“Yes, political circuses are entertaining. But these should not dissipate our energies the way they consume those who stage them. We’re tired of political drama and social instability. Let’s not be distracted or distressed by vaudeville acts that appeal to our worst fears, when we can be inspired by what our economy is showing that appeals to our best hopes,” she said.
She said the business pages of newspapers last Tuesday showed the good news about the country while the front pages showed that “there are those who flog us with tales of conspiracies that leave welts of doubt of our resolve to move on.”
“It’s bashing as usual. They are men and women who peddle distrust. The bleating noises they make seek to drown out the humming sounds of the engines of our economy,” she said.
The President said the government will continue to pursue the integration of ICT in education because ICT is “one of the strongest galvanizers of the Philippine economy” and the “vanguard of political and economic stability as well as our national security.” (JMR/MSN/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Iloilo. (September 20, 2007 issue)
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