Preventing another ZTE mess

Here we go again, on our way to a messy non-ending, leaving loose ends hanging as we wait for the next scandal.

With the resignation of Benjamin Abalos as chairman of the Commission on Elections, those who have been accused of high crimes are hoping that everything will now be forgotten, if not forgiven.

Since, as certain quarters have pointed out, the ZTE scandal looks like nothing more than a double-cross among people who are so rich they can say no to multimillion-dollar bribe offers because they think they are worth more, it is tempting to simply move on, the way we always do when we realize that what we are seeing is a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Already there appears to be a groundswell among senators, now on vacation mode, to end the ZTE probe for good and toss it instead to the Office of the Ombudsman, or the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission, or some agency where the case can gather dust at least until noon of June 30, 2010.

At the House of Representatives, the effort to get even with Speaker Jose de Venecia is blowing hot and cold, with opposing camps gauging the chamber’s sentiment in impeaching President Arroyo. De Venecia still enjoys sufficient following in the chamber. But scrapping the ZTE deal, combined with threats to unseat De Venecia as Speaker, could dampen enthusiasm even among his allies for a presidential impeachment.

Also, with Malacañang announcing that the broadband project isn’t dead and only the ZTE folks are the big losers here, there is still the possibility that the project could be awarded to another entity. Amsterdam Holdings, perhaps? Politics works in mysterious ways.

Even Abalos, who looks like he was made to take the fall, may yet get his birthday wish to clear his name. Even with the new graft cases that he is expected to face, courtesy of Rolex Suplico, Abalos could find vindication before June 30, 2010.

With all the players in this drama seen as damaged goods, as critics of the entire scandal sniff, we are likely to miss out on an opportunity to correct the flaws that make questionable government transactions possible.

People like to quote George Santayana’s warning, that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. Unless remedial measures are put in place, we are bound to see more scandals like the one involving ZTE.

This deal at least was aborted in the wake of a scandal that has crept to the doorstep of Malacañang. Unless remedial measures are put in place, there will be many more questionable deals – and they are bound to be consummated, perpetuating the culture of large-scale corruption in high places.

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If Romulo Neri, who chairs the Commission on Higher Education merely in an acting capacity because he lacks the required doctorate, was telling the truth, President Arroyo deserves censure at the very least for ignoring a report about a P200-million bribe offer by the Comelec chairman in connection with a deal that doesn’t even have anything to do with elections.

That censure can be the result of an impeachment trial. But many of our lawmakers have this notion that such a trial has only two possible outcomes — acquittal or ouster — and the congressional partisans will wage battle along these lines.

If Neri wakes up on the right side of the bed one of these days, or when it dawns on him that someone perceived to be allied with De Venecia is never going to get back the post of secretary-general of the National Economic and Development Authority, he might finally bare to the public the details of his conversations with the President in connection with the ZTE deal.

Until this happens, the opposition will just have to wait for noon of June 30, 2010, when Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo loses her presidential immunity from lawsuits and can be haled to court for criminal offenses.

In the meantime, new schemes to earn fat commissions are being hatched. Two and a half years can be over too soon.

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How to prevent shady deals, especially those that exploit loopholes in the law, should be the focus of those who are in a position to prevent a repeat of the ZTE scandal.

The scrapping of the ZTE deal should not render moot the case filed against it before the Supreme Court. The public must hear from the tribunal whether the deal was anomalous and deserved to be canceled. The public needs at least a hint from the tribunal on whether certain individuals warrant criminal indictments in connection with the deal. The high court made such suggestions when it voided the Comelec’s P1.2-billion poll automation contract with Mega Pacific. It should not wash its hands of the ZTE controversy.

The latest word last night was that the Senate would invite First Gentleman Mike Arroyo to answer accusations that he directly intervened in the ZTE deal.

If the First Gentleman shows up, it would be his second face-off with Alan Peter Cayetano, now a senator and chairman of the Blue Ribbon committee which is tackling the broadband issue.

Mike Arroyo may have a PR problem, but you must concede that in his first confrontation with Cayetano at the House in the 13th Congress, the younger man was shown to be fishing for evidence about secret bank accounts.

In the ZTE case, Cayetano should be prepared, in case the First Gentleman decides to show up. Can “FG” also invoke executive privilege? This matter could also be headed for the Supreme Court.

Lawmakers can focus on the doables. They must pass legislation that will give them effective oversight when it comes to government-to-government deals or projects financed through foreign loans. Anything that will require public spending must be subjected to congressional oversight.

Senators have already said they plan to amend laws and rules on government procurement. Both chambers should also overhaul their ethics rules.

In the ZTE scandal, certain individuals may go unpunished. But the nation can prevent a repeat of this mess.