From K to K

Malacañang has given a human face to the May 2010 campaign slogan of President Aquino “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap.” However, its human face is not Filipino. The Palace imported all the way from the United States an expert who would teach and train Filipino bureaucrats on how to effectively carry out P-Noy’s all out war against corruption wherever it may be found in the government.

The Palace formally introduced last Tuesday American professor Robert Klitgaard, dubbed as the “world’s leading expert on corruption.” Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda disclosed Klitgaard was invited through the help of Budget Secretary Florencio Abad and the Asian Institute of Management (AIM). It is not clear who paid for his consultancy services, or perhaps it’s pro bono or free of charge.

The American corruption expert spoke before the Cabinet workshop on anti-corruption strategies held in Malacañang. President Aquino was profuse in his praises on the credentials of Klitgaard.

From the Palace press statement, it was indicated that Klitgaard has been a consultant at the White House, the Rockefeller and Ford foundations, the United Nations, USAID, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, as well as to many governments around the world. He has been billed “the world’s leading expert on corruption” by The Christian Science Monitor.

Speaking at the Cabinet workshop on anti-corruption, P-Noy echoed his high expectations on what will come out of Klitgaard’s presentation at the end of this activity that was also attended by other high-ranking government functionaries.

“Dr. Klitgaard has famously said that corruption equals monopoly of power, plus official discretion, minus accountability. Accountability is the people’s domain,” the President cited. This is why, P-Noy stressed, one strategy that his administration wants to put in place is “not just to bring daylight into every nook and cranny in government, but also to open the halls of power to the people.”

Actually, the hiring of anti-corruption consultant like Klitgaard is nothing new. P-Noy’s immediate predecessor, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo hired the services of Hong Kong’s anti-corruption consultant Tony Kwok. And what did the Arroyo administration gain out of Kwok’s expertise? 

Kwok’s credibility would go down the drain if we enumerate the scandal-rocked government projects and multi-million dollar foreign contracts entered into during the Arroyo administration that were derailed by corruption charges.

Kwok’s anti-corruption prescriptions to the Philippine government obviously proved ineffective, if not inutile. Will Klitgaard be any different and succeed where Kwok failed?

Twenty months into office, the Aquino administration has found itself in the eye of similar mega-dollar scandal involving the head of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor). American firm Wynn Resorts Ltd. whose chief executive Steve Wynn accused Pagcor officials of receiving $110,000 payment from his estranged business partner in Las Vegas, Kazuo Okada. A formal complaint has been lodged against Okada that included allegations against Pagcor chairman Cristino Naguiat Jr. that the latter supposedly enjoyed perks and privileges from the accused Japanese gambling tycoon.

Wynn charged in court Okada of allegedly making improper payments and gifts to Filipino gaming regulators as the latter’s Universal Entertainment Corp. broke ground at the 12-hectare “Entertainment City” Pagcor project at the Manila Bay reclamation area.

It was former Pagcor chief Efraim Genuino, Naguiat’s immediate predecessor, who first awarded in 2008 to Okada’s group a contract to build the $5-billion hotel-resort complex called Entertainment City. It is billed to become Manila’s counterpart of the Las Vegas strip in US. However, the contract was only perfected under the Aquino administration.

Unfortunately for Naguiat, he was caught in the middle of a raging corporate battle between the two warring ex-casino partners and Pagcor’s project also got entangled. Okada has a $2-billion investment in Entertainment City.

Naguiat hopes this intra-corporate dispute will not deter the two other project partners of Entertainment City, namely Bloomberry’s Solaire and the SM Consortium’s Belle Grande. They are expected to open by 2013. This project is estimated to generate at least one million jobs and one million tourists, Naguiat cited.

Naguiat did not deny receiving freebies from Wynn Resorts during his five-day visit in Macau in September 2010. He, however, stressed that this was limited to complimentary hotel accommodations from Okada, an acceptable “industry practice.” He clarified though that the $110,000 alleged cash gifts mentioned in the lawsuit covered all the casino regulators they were doing business with during the period 2008 to 2011. The Pagcor chief also denied that his wife received an expensive Chanel bag from Wynn Resorts.

Naturally, the Palace came to the defense of the embattled Naguiat. After all, Naguiat is among the former classmates of P-Noy in Ateneo de Manila University who were appointed in key government positions under this administration.

Lacierda has been taking up the cudgels for Naguiat. Lacierda echoed Naguiat’s lament that he is just “collateral damage” in this intra-corporate feud of two estranged casino partners now lodged before the US courts.

In his regular press briefing at the Palace, Lacierda went into detailed defense that while Naguiat indeed went to Macau, the Pagcor chief paid for the travel expenses of his wife and children. Lacierda explained that Naguiat’s wife and children merely stayed at the same hotel accommodation for the Pagcor chief while attending a convention in Macau hosted by Okada.

All things said, it seems Naguiat is in no danger of losing his post because of this. But it gave rise to the latest text joke passed. It goes this way:

Apat na ‘K’ na pala ang malalakas kay P-Noy:

- Kaklase

- Kaibigan

- Kabarilan at…

- Koreana ! (Referring to the latest apple of the presidential eye, Grace Lee, of course!)