The unabated flow of billions of pesos in public funds to the rivers of corruption, which President BBM himself denounced last July, has shaken both the government and the private sector to smithereens.
For a moment, even the most optimistic of Filipinos were shocked and immobilized by the sheer impact of our society's financial and cultural disaster.
The systemic corruption has hit bedrock, and the sinkhole cannot anymore go deeper. As newly designated DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said, upon physically inspecting the extent of ghost flood control projects in Bulacan, "only animals can do this."
Although not much of an animal lover, I beg to disagree, Mr. Vince. Your vitriol is an affront to the animals, especially the compassionate elephant, the highly intelligent octopus, and the dogs and cats which are very loyal to their owners---even laying down their lives to defend their masters and members of his/her family.
Only human beings with their insatiable greed possess the chutzpah to plan and execute such high-level financial crimes against society.
With former congressman and House Appropriations Committee chair Elizaldy Co already abroad without clear intentions of returning to face his accusers, former House leader Martin Romualdez proved to be man enough not to stay and help in the ongoing investigations of the anomalous flood control and similar infrastructure projects.
Last September 17, Rep. Martin Romualdez of the first district of Leyte resigned as Speaker of the House of Representatives, amidst the scandal created by unscrupulous contractors, government engineers and officials of the DPWH, and certain lawmakers.
At this low point of his political career, Romualdez is determined to pick up the pieces and cooperate with the authorities investigating the scandal.
He was reported to have been invited by the Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) which was created and tasked by the President to look into the irregularities. Romualdez's office has issued a statement saying he will honor the invitation with his presence.
A long-time House reporter who's familiar with the way congressional insertions or budget amendments are processed, has aired his observations on the issue.
"If we are to zero in mainly on the insertions and then point fingers at Romualdez for allegedly receiving bribes for those insertions, we'll only end up losing," he said.
The following explanation, also from this source, might help.
"Priority list vetting and submission starts with the regions, regional agencies, local government units (LGUs), lawmakers, national government agencies (NGAs) and priority areas visited by the Speaker and are consolidated into one priority list.
"There are also requests from LGUs, lawmakers, and NGAs. But all these are submitted to the chairman of the Appropriations Committee who does the final vetting and approval. And that happens to be Zaldy Co.
"And nowhere in the process after the consolidation of the list does the hand of the Speaker appear. As members of the House bare, the Speaker won't show up during the process as his mere presence would be interpreted as intervening or vouching for a particular area in the budget. And so far, no Speaker has ever done that. If one is to look into the Speaker's role in these shady projects, he has to do better."
That is a sedate way of looking at what transpired, how congressional insertions turned into money-making instruments of corruption, and it is a must for Romualdez to unravel the scandal.
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