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Sunday, September 23, 2007
Anti-corruption group supports for PC probe
CEBU CITY -- Businessmen Lapu-Lapu City have found an ally in the church-based Dilaab Foundation, which has thrown its support behind their efforts to expose corruption in the city.
Motives of Mactan Island Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCI) president Efrain Pelaez in uncovering anomalous transactions in the city have been questioned but for Dilaab head Fr. Carmelo Diola, the businessmen are merely doing their social duty.
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“The data that they have managed to produce are very revealing. We stand behind their efforts to be vigilant. It is our social responsibility to raise questions because we are all losers in corruption,” Diola said in a press conference Saturday.
He was with Pampanga Gov. Ed Panlilio, who was in Cebu for speaking engagements.
Panlilio, a priest whose victory in the May 14 elections was a political landmark, said the government should have transparency and accountability.
He further said as it is, it’s already a shame that the Philippines, a predominantly Christian country, has been named as one of the most corrupt in Asia.
“The government must be an open book so the people will be more equipped in their decisions,” said Panlilio.
The Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas is already looking into Pelaez’s disclosure of an allegedly anomalous purchase of computers in Lapu-Lapu City.
Diola called on the anti-graft office to speed up its probe on the matter.
“The sooner this is verified, the better for all of us. We are not accusing the ombudsman of whitewash, but we are calling for a no-whitewash, aboveboard and clear-to-the-public investigation on this. The public has the right to be informed,” said Diola.
“There are questions and we deserve answers that don’t beat around the bush, answers that are transparent. Let the data come out some more,” he added.
The Dilaab Foundation launched Saturday a “lifestyle check tipster kit” in its effort to help develop a “corruption-intolerant” culture.
“The Philippines is a nation of broken hearts. We are all in this together as part of the problem and part of the solution,” Diola said. (JPM of Sun.Star Cebu)For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star General Santos. (September 23, 2007 issue)
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