What's with this administration?

A reader asks why a perfectly good concrete road in Las Piñas City is being crushed preparatory to re-concreting. Public works insiders say why. Some tycoon is in need of filling material for a major construction project, presumably a shopping mall or high-rise condo. And since old concrete is the best there is, he “contracted” road officials to provide him with it.

Here’s the modus operandi. Officials allocate funds for the roadwork. A favored constructor happily tears up and repaves the road for a fat fee, sharing profit with the officials. The tycoon hauls off the concrete bits to his project site, gifting the officials a fat tip. Everybody happy — except taxpayer Juan dela Cruz.

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Speaking of city streets, Metro Manila chairman Bayani Fernando is putting up more U-turn slots — to boost his presidential candidacy. The ubiquitous road breaks supposedly are subtle infomercials. Too subtle, however, that the message is lost.

The U-turn lanes have signs in Tagalog: Likuang-U. Underneath is a parenthetical pun “Lee Kuan Yew”. Fernando’s campaigners supposedly want voters to associate him with the Singaporean martinet prime minister. They believe this would project his one winning trait as disciplinarian. Duh?

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These days sleek vans and SUVs crowd the Philippine Rice Institute parking lot in Muñoz, Nueva Ecija. Recently the board directors awarded themselves and top managers car plans, with 70 percent of cost charged to the agency. To justify the subsidy, the perk beneficiaries at first said the vehicles would be for general staff use for three years. But after having the office purchase their preferred models, they never lent these out for their subordinates’ many land trips. Instead they drew even more fuel allowances for personal outings.

The demoralized staff sent evidence of the scam to a senator, who in turn referred it to the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission.

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The PAGC is slow to investigate, however. That’s because the officer to whom the case was referred is too busy keeping two mistresses. One of the two used to be a subordinate of the officer; both of them are married. The second girlfriend discovered the affair and demanded that the officer force the first to resign. He still sees both of them, though.

The PAGC is in charge of whipping presidential appointees into line. Its duty is to keep them aware of the Constitution’s rule on public service, to wit: “Public officers and employees must at all times be accountable to the people, serve them with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty, and efficiency, act with patriotism and justice, and lead modest lives.”

Obviously our PAGC officer from Malacañang fails.

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Over at the Technical Education & Skills Development Authority, millions of pesos were spent designing a website that should have cost only tens of thousands. And hundreds of thousands more are being spent monthly to maintain the new site, although it costs only a tenth to run the old one.

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Even though Education Sec. Jesli Lapus has ditched the P427-million noodle supply, authorities will still probe the overpricing. This, per Deputy Ombudsman Mark Jalandoni, is because the deal’s scrapping does not douse the liability of purchasing officers. Besides, the aborted contract is but the latest of a series of questionable biddings in which only one bidder consistently qualified. In past deals, education officials purchased not only noodles but also shampoos, anemia tablets, and ear examination gadgets worth P728 million.

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Only recently retired police general Nestorio Gualberto reassumed his post as Customs enforcement and security head. He was removed some months back to placate another retired general. But now barely re-warming his old seat, he is being eased out again. Reportedly, a third retired general wants the powerful ESS and is backed by influence peddlers. A balikbayan, notorious in Customs circles, is lobbying for the third man in behalf of a presidential kin. The ESS headship can be lucrative in the hands of a dirty operator.

When will they stop?

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No, the Comelec automation is too serious a matter to just sing away with the Harry Belafonte refrain, “She take me money and run Venezuela.” The outcome of the May 2010 balloting relies on the P11.3-billion project. It’s worthwhile to recall what Stalin said: “Do not be deluded or misled. People who cast votes count to nothing. People who count votes control the destiny of nations.”

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