Last week, the title of this column was -When the House keeps crumbling down.
It was a title that came to mind, so I did some research to check. It is a metaphorical expression. It does not literally refer to a physical building collapsing. Instead, it conveys systemic breakdown or imminent failure.
What happened this week heightened suspense and anticipation regarding the crumbling.
I refer to the arrest of former Congressman Zaldy Co in the Czech Republic a few days ago.
As I wrote last year about the expressed desire of the present administration to arrest Mr. Co and bring him to the Philippines to face the charges against him, I said: Does the administration of Pres. Marcos really want him here?
The same question can be asked of former Speaker Martin Romualdez. Does he really want Mr. Co, his chosen Chairman of the powerful Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives, back in the Philippines to tell us what he knows of the corruption at the DPWH?
Mr. Co's lawyer has already said that Mr. Co has in his possession a great deal of evidence regarding corruption that has no equal in the country's history. In most media reports, the amount is staggering: 800 billion pesos over the last 3 years, as stated recently by former Senate President Franklin Drilon.
The relative silence and paucity of information, or the lack of it, on the arrest of Mr. Co is nothing short of deafening. It gives the impression that we are not being told the whole story.
We should see screaming headlines in the media about Mr. Co, but we barely see any. Someone is putting a lid on the news. Or are there ongoing planning sessions on this matter scheduled for implementation starting this Monday?
The circumstances behind his arrest are conspicuously few.
It is like the proverbial calm before the storm. Can this be happening? Or did this happen because Mr. Co precisely did not want to be caught flatfooted and defenseless in Portugal? Is he seeking protection in the Czech Republic? Is he trying to save himself from harm?
These things can be much different from what they appear to be. We should see more than what meets the eye.
The “House crumbling down” article might be related to what is happening with Mr.Co. If this is the case, Mr. Co could soon be here to tell just about everything as long as he can save himself. A tell-all situation that will cause the House to fall to pieces. It could be a disarray as we have never seen before.
Very interesting alternative scenarios are before us.
When it rains, it pours. We should see more on this topic in the days ahead.
#OpinYon #ZaldyCo #CzechRepublic #FloodControl