A quorum of senators

Former Senator Panfilo Lacson, now presidential assistant on rehabilitation and recovery, revealed that Janet Lim-Napoles’ husband and two children had met with him offering Janet to turn state witness. Lacson said he was given a draft affidavit and documents naming a quorum of senators. There are 24 senators, and a quorum consists of at least 13 of them as recipient of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) kickbacks.

Lacson’s revelation, in effect, substantially confirms Napoles’ tell all-affidavit signed in the presence of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima. Lacson and De Lima’s latest revelation now confirms that in the first batch charged, the Department of Justice/National Bureau of Investigation (DOJ/NBI) was selective and charged only 3 opposition senators (Enrile, Estrada, and Revilla), and covered up a hundred lawmakers, including Liberal Party (LP) allies of President Aquino.

The same could be said of the Blue Ribbon Committee where senators failed to ask the witnesses the names of other lawmakers on the documents received by the NBI and the whistleblowers.

The sooner Secretary de Lima releases copies of the new Napoles affidavit to the Blue Ribbon Committee and to the media, the less suspicion there would be of a selective cover-up by Malacañang and De Lima. 

Senator Ping Lacson should also release his copy of the draft affidavit of Napoles to media. After all he has already publicly announced that the new Napoles list contains a number of senators enough to form a quorum.

Surprise presscon

Senate President Franklin Drilon called a press conference to deny reports he is on a purported list of 13 senators on the Janet Lim-Napoles tell-all affivavit to DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima and the draft affidavit handed to Senator Ping Lacson.

Early on pictures of Drilon and his wife, Mila, travelling with Janet Napoles had been printed in media.

Whistleblowers object

Benhur Luy and Ruby Tuason, through their lawyers Raji Mendoza and Dennis Manalo, have expressed strong objection to a proposal to make Janet Lim-Napoles a state witness.

They raised a probability that Napoles’ new affidavit will conflict with the previous testimony of the whistleblowers. They insist that Napoles does not comply with three of the four requirements, among them that Napoles is not the most guilty.

They have asked Secretary de Lima for an audience next week. The whistleblowers have good reason to be afraid. They will be sidelined by the new Napoles testimony and Napoles will go scot free.

Meanwhile, Senator T.G. Guingona decided not to reopen the Blue Ribbon Committee until after the evaluation of Secretary de Lima of the new Napoles affidavit, but De Lima’s body language indicates she is favoring accepting Napoles as a state witness.

Social media netizens are divided on the issue.

Successful effort

The apology first expressed by Mayor Joseph Estrada to the Hong Kong (HK) government and people has been accepted by HK Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying. Hong Kong promptly announced the lifting of travel sanctions on Philippines government officials as well as the travel ban on HK residents to the Philippines.

In a presscon, Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras claimed credit for national government’s seven-month effort to bring closure to the case.

Mayor Erap should be given full credit for his effort, including getting the private sector to donate the funds for the compensation of the victims.

Some credit should be given also to former Trade and Finance Secretary Jose Titoy Pardo and Councilor Bernie Ang, who played a role in the negotiations. The City Council of Manila also passed a resolution expressing an apology which came after President Aquino refused to issue one.

Name names

Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano urged DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima and former Senator Ping Lacson to release the names of 12 or 13 senators mentioned by Janet Lim-Napoles in her new affidavit.

Cayetano said the named senators can defend themselves and be subject to Senate disciplinary processes.  At least six incumbent senators have been mentioned in reports as being in the new Napoles list while at least six are former senators.

With Miriam Santiago’s charge that Ping Lacson is Enrile’s attack dog, Lacson should come out and name names.

PNP corruption again

Chief Inspector Elmer Santiago named 11 Philippine National Police officers as being engaged in a cybersex operation and illegal drug activities in Bataan.

Santiago was promptly shot dead. Now named as principal suspect in the murder is Superintendent Maristelo Manalo, one of the eleven named by Santiago. Santiago was shot dead outside Manalo’s house.

Note that two months earlier, the entire Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) personnel of Pampanga was relieved after being charged for appropriating confiscated shabu for themselves.

These two cases again refutes President Aquino’s claim that we are recovering from corruption.

Not true

A statement from a fake news website saying the United States (US) government is considering a “no visa” policy for Filipinos has gone viral. The US Embassy in Manila and the Philippine Embassy in Washington denied the report.

But there is truth to the report that Japan is considering a  no visa-policy for Filipinos, Indonesians, and Vietnamese.

Pacquiao wins one

The Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) disapproved the garnishment order of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on the assets of Sarangani Congressman Manny Pacquiao. But, the CTA imposed a requirement for Pacquiao to put up a cash bond of P3.3 billion, which is more than Pacquiao’s net worth.

Pacquiao lawyers said that Pacquaio filed a 2013 Income Tax Return, with a tax liability amounting to P161 million.

Tidbits: Nineteen Russians, Ukrainians, and Filipinos were rescued from a suspected brothel in Pasay City.

Ralph John Ugalino, 19, a chemistry graduate of Talavera, Nueva Ecija, topped the list of 20 summa cum laude graduates and will lead around 4,000 graduates of the UP in Diliman during the commencement exercises on Sunday; graduating summa cum laude, with a general average of 1.067. 

Metro Rail Transit (MRT) president Al Vitangcol worked for Mar Roxas when he was a senator.