Political rivalry may be the principal motivation in the accusations hurled by Bugallon Mayor Rodrigo Orduña against Pangasinan Governor Amado Espino Jr. But political rivalry has led to the discovery of many anomalies in government. Orduña’s accusations – denied by Espino – of the governor’s involvement in jueteng operations warrant a closer look.
Orduña, a confessed jueteng operator, has alleged that Espino regularly receives millions of pesos in jueteng payola. Yesterday, Orduña challenged Espino to bare his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth to prove that the governor’s wealth is legitimately acquired. Espino is not a justice of the Supreme Court and the SALN is supposed to be a public document so there should be no problem here.
Amid this scandal, authorities may want to look into the SALNs of other local government executives, several of whom have also been implicated in jueteng and other illegal numbers games as well as criminal activities such as smuggling and even drug trafficking.
If public officials cannot be pinned down for direct involvement in criminal activities, they can be investigated for accumulating wealth beyond their means. The Bureau of Internal Revenue has started going after public servants believed to be involved in corrupt activities by checking their tax declarations and payments against visible manifestations of wealth. If warranted and using proper procedures, the money-laundering police can and should be brought in.
Even with amendments in anti-gambling laws, the penalties are still laughable for those who are believed to earn billions annually from illegal numbers games. The country also has no laws against racketeering. But there are enough laws against tax evasion and false declarations in SALNs to go after corrupt public officials. Authorities should not hesitate in applying those laws.