I am not surprised that people who are generally sympathetic to P-Noy or who just want him to succeed for our country’s sake were horrified at how Malacañang reacted to the Naguiat affair. The general disgust revolves around the seeming double standard in P-Noy’s Daang Matuwid: one for the likes of Corona and another for presidential cronies like Bong Naguiat of Pagcor.
I took the trouble of calling Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda to warn him that their “industry practice” defense stinks. I told him what I wrote in this column last Friday: it is not possible to separate the regulator personality of Naguiat from his casino operation job unless Naguiat is schizophrenic. The regulator job is the overwhelming character of his Pagcor job and it requires rather high ethical standards.
“Industry practice” is not a defense that an official in P-Noy’s administration can use. There are a lot of “industry practices” that are ethically questionable. Because of his Daang Matuwid, they should have nothing to do with such practices.
It was after all, “industry practice” for Ate Glue, Mike A, Joe de V and Ben Abalos to enjoy a golf game with the ZTE executives in China and get free accommodations and other perks there too while the NBN deal was pending. The “mayroon ka dito” offered to then NEDA Chief Romy Neri that so shocked him was also “industry practice” he said he ignored.
The revelations contained in Wynn’s case filed in a Nevada court challenge the core of P-Noy’s Daang Matuwid battlecry and should worry him. For instance, Wynn rejected a proposed investment in Pagcor’s project because “official corruption in the Philippine gaming industry is deeply ingrained.”
The worse part of the report is the doubt cited in the complaint “that newly elected President Aquino’s stated plans for reform would eliminate corruption in the gaming industry” and that “the country’s legal/regulatory frameworks were not closely aligned with American compliance and transparency standards.”
But the Palace even made the situation worse by justifying Naguiat’s freebies as saving the government some funds. It makes them look like they have lost their ethical bearings and makes us wonder how long it will take before their administration starts looking and smelling like Ate Glue’s.
I took pains to explain to Edwin that they have to be extremely careful because people are judging them based on the high standards P-Noy himself set in his Daang Matuwid. Naguiat’s “industry practice” would not have raised eyebrows under Ate Glue’s watch. But for P-Noy, the Daan must always be Matuwid. It cannot be medyo matuwid. It cannot be kung minsan matuwid.
Let me explain by citing an e-mail I just received from one of my readers. Joey Pengson recounted an actual example of how a high government official lives by the high ethical standards demanded by his office. This is but a moment in the life of the late BSP Governor Paeng Buenaventura but P-Noy and his KKK gang can learn a lot from it.
Hi Boo… It is unfortunate that the PAGCOR Chairman and CEO is hiding behind the reason of “industry practice” to justify his recent lapse in judgment. I recall an invitation we sent to then Central Bank Governor, Paeng Buenaventrura, to attend an Anti-Money Laundering Banking Seminar in the company’s Conference and Training facility in Switzerland with well-known resource speakers from the international financial and central banking community.
At that time, the conference may have been considered an “official business” trip with a valid reason for travel and it was an “industry practice”. We mentioned that the Central Bank only had to shoulder the air fare and the company would shoulder board and lodging and other travel and conference-related expenses.
He did not accept the offer.
He instead responded to our invitation by saying that it was inappropriate and against the law to accept a direct invitation from a “supplier”. The Central Bank then sent us a letter of regrets due to the reasons mentioned.
Like you, I do not buy the “industry practice” excuse. Every industry has its “practice”. Is the acceptable “industry practice” now equivalent to a US$6,000.00 a night hotel accommodation? What will it be next year? Or the next deal?
A more vital question is what does our leadership (not just P-Noy) practice? P-Noy’s team should be more circumspect in situations involving “industry practices”. P-Noy has set the tone and has taken the lead . . . BY EXAMPLE. We may never experience another P-Noy in this and the next lifetime. So, let us all follow and build on his example to sustain our efforts towards a better direction. A better life.
The late Paeng Buenaventura had the proper breeding. Naguiat obviously did not have the right values ingrained in him. Even if they both took their high school in Ateneo, the difference is Paeng’s parents trained him well to know what is right from wrong.
Incognito
Naguiat apparently didn’t tell P-Noy the whole story of his Macau visit. Based on excerpts from a report prepared for Wynn’s board by the law firm run by Louis J. Freeh , the former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, it turns out the excuse about “industry practice” is not exactly true.
For one thing, why would Naguiat try to conceal his real identity? He must feel what he is doing isn’t exactly kosher. For another, his hosts were horrified at the costs of his “courtesies” after the fact, proof it was not “industry practice”. Here are pertinent excerpts from that report as published by the New York Times:
“September 22, 2010 (14:00): Wynn Macau sends 1 Rolls Royce and 1 Elgrand to the airport, along with Masato Araki, Special Assistant to Mr. Okada; and Kenichiro Watanabe, another Universal associate, to meet arriving party, who arrived on Philippine Airline Flight 352 from Manila. They return with Chairman Cristino L. Naguiat, Rogelio Bangsil and Jeffrey Opinion at 14:45.79.
“Only Mr. Bangsil furnishes his name upon registration. Ms. Lai and Wynn Macau VIP Services Manager Beatrice Yeung thereafter checks PAGCOR website and identifies Chairman Naguiat’s name from his picture there. Ms. Yeung’s log and ongoing entries refer to ‘[I]ncognito (Mr. Naguiat, Cristino L.).’ Chairman Naguiat occupies Villa 81, the most expensive accommodation at Wynn Resorts Macau (about 7,000 square feet in size, which then cost about US $6,000 per day and is mostly reserved for ‘high rollers’).
“September 22, 2010: the Wynn Encore log book reflects “Incognito (Mr. Naguiat) stayed in Villa 81 Master Bedroom l.
“The testimonial and documentary evidence also shows that despite deliberate attempts to conceal Chairman Naguiat’s identity while a guest at Wynn Resorts Macau in September 2010, hotel staff, acting on their own, soon identified Chairman Naguiat by means of a photo from the PAGCOR website. Their interest in doing so was sparked by the fact that the senior PAGCOR guest known to them, Mr. Bangsil, exercised great deference to Chairman Naguiat, who the staff determined must be the ‘boss’. Nevertheless, the VIP service providers continued to refer to Chairman Naguiat only as ‘sir,’ thereby following the wishes and directions of Chairman Naguiat and Mr. Okada’s associates.
“The evidence also shows that several weeks after Chairman Naguiat’s intended ‘Incognito’ stay at Villa 81, Mr. Okada’s associates became concerned about the high cost of Chairman Naguiat’s luxury stay at Wynn Resorts Macau. Specifically, Mr. Okada’s associate advised Wynn Resorts Macau that the amount being charged for Chairman Naguiat’s stay was too much over an ordinary business expense.
“Mr. Okada’s associate then asked if Wynn Resorts Macau ‘could reconsider the matter [Chairman Naguiat’s stay] and charge us [Mr. Okada’s company] the original rate [and free upgrade to a Villa] since the party directly dealing with on this matter is our company [Mr. Okada’s company] rather than each individual guest [Chairman Naguiat].’
“Mr. Okada’s associate further stated that ‘since the amount charged [for Chairman Naguiat] is too much beyond the ordinary room charge, our company [Mr. Okada’s company] will be put in a very difficult position to give reasonable explanations if we are inquired by someone.’”
As P-Noy admonished the nation last Saturday at EDSA, “gawin ang tama sa araw araw…” Hopefully his kabarkada in government were listening to him too. They have to walk the talk.
Incidentally, the Ombudsman should get a copy of the Wynn complaint filed before a Nevada court because the annexes contain a treasure trove of information about Genuino they will find interesting… complete with diagrams in case the narrative may be a bit confusing.
Moon over China
Joey Pengson also sent a joke.
Two blonde girls were lying on the grass in Central Park one evening gazing at the clear night sky, the stars and the moon. One of the blonde girls asked “what do you think is farther, China or the moon ?”
The other responded, “duh, can we see China ?”
Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is bchanco@gmail.com. He is also on Twitter @boochanco