State of confusion

 If everything about the pork barrel scam appears to be getting muddled with the emergence of at least three lists containing names of people who supposedly dealt with Janet Napoles, then the government only has itself to blame, that is if that is not in fact the direction government exactly wants the issue to go.

While the three lists have gotten everybody befuddled, very few, if at all, are aware that long before the lists were made public, President Aquino himself already had his own list provided him by Napoles. He got the list, Aquino said, at a time when Napoles still didn't want to talk to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.

This story about Aquino already having had a copy of the list long before the list came out was run by a national daily on Tuesday, May 13, but was buried, for reasons known only to the daily, on Page 6 under the heading "P-Noy admits seeing 2 Napoles lists." Less significant stories fared better and made Page 1.

By his own account in the story, Aquino said he gave the list to de Lima. Now remember that in the story, Aquino said he got the list at a time when Napoles still did not want to talk to the justice secretary, meaning this was way way back, perhaps shortly after Napoles surrendered to him in Malacañang.

Now the question begs to be asked -- why did neither Aquino nor de Lima breathe a word about their having already seen a Napoles list since way way back? Is it because the list, just like the three others now being circulated, contained names of friends and allies?

Now take into consideration the fact that the first one to make public the contents of such a list is former senator Panfilo Lacson, who conveniently never used his pork barrel, thus giving him the "moral high ground" to pillory everyone who did, and who even more conveniently now works for Aquino in a strange capacity.

Strange because, having been appointed ostensibly as post-Yolanda rehabilitation czar despite the lack of appropriate qualifications, he is instead in the thick of things pertaining to the pork barrel, which his appointment has nothing to do about.

As to his real job as rehab czar, he has admitted having not moved forward because of the lack of cooperation from members of his Malacañang team. Shouldn't he even try harder to do the job instead of pointing fingers? Or is finger-pointing his real job and the rehab job was just a smokescreen.

Remember, this government has been bragging it can already nail the pork scammers with buzzer-beating three-point slam dunks even without any so-called Napoles list. And it serves Napoles no purpose to serve up three. But it does the president if, as a result, the lists that include allies lose their credibility.

Everybody is now clamoring for Napoles herself to release the list. But what good will that do, now that its credibility has been assailed by the emergence of other supposed lists? Even if she releases her list now, coming as it will after the confusion, it will no longer be completely believable.

Is this scenario of confusion not the intended environment sought to be created by the emergence of three lists? Three lists whose contents do not jibe with one another fuels speculation about the veracity of each one.

Even the list in the hands of de Lima, for whose release some people are also clamoring, is now very much suspect, given the reluctance of the justice secretary to promptly make it public, which is not in keeping with her enthusiasm to go to town if those involved happen to be enemies of the president.

On the other hand, of what use are the lists being made public when their publication is not before the proper forums. What has proceeded so far as a result of their emergence is a sweeping trial by publicity that crippled everyone in one fell swoop, including those who may be truly innocent.

In fact, if we are truly the democracy that we purport ourselves to be, everybody ought to be considered innocent until proven guilty in court. But that is not what is happening. Instead, the showcase of democracy in Asia shoots first and asks questions later. We truly deserve the government we get.