Probe vs Puno related to anomalous procurements?

MANILA, Philippines – The senstive documents that Interior Undersecretary Rico Puno reportedly attempted to retrieve from the condominium of his late boss, Jesse Robredo, may be related to an ongoing investigation into anomalous procurements of arms for the police.

A report by ABS-CBN’s Anthony Taberna on TV Patrol Friday, September 7, revealed that one of the documents in Robredo’s condominium contained details of the bidding of two arms procurement deals worth almost P400 million.

According to the report, one of the contracts was worth about P178 million and the other, P213 million.

The bidding was ordered suspended pending the result of the investigation.

Robredo received the document on the procurements on August 8, 10 days before his fatal plane crash off the waters of Masbate.

Doubts over bidding

The report said that a group of 4 — including Puno, former Special Action Force Chief Leocadio Santiago, Puno’s consultant Ramiro Lopez III, and a certain Reynaldo Espineli of the company R. Espineli — was involved in the shelved bidding.

The group left the country for Israel after Puno was invited by foreign gun supplier Israel Military Industries (IMI) on May 10, the date of a pre-bid conference for the procurement of assault rifles.

After the trip, IMI and R. Espineli were the only bidders left out of 7 groups that participated in the pre-bid conference, according to the report.

The report added Robredo expressed apprehension over the bidding because of the exorbitant prices of the arms. There was also concern over a possible conflict of interest that could destroy the integrity of the bidding process. Puno and Lopez were members of the bids and awards committee.

It is unclear whether this document was the one Puno and his group were after when they allegedly attempted to enter Robredo’s condominium on August 19, a day after Robredo’s plane crashed off Masbate.

What is certain is that it shows Robredo was investigating the undersecretary.

Puno is a longtime friend of President Aquino, and is a former gun supplier.

No confirmation from Palace

Atty. Leni Robredo, the widow of the late Secretary, earlier admitted in Naga that it was her who had requested that their apartment be secured. She later revealed Friday morning in an interview on radio dzMM, that this was following a call from her househelp who notified her that someone had tried to enter their apartment and asked for documents.

Leni said she had not known it was Puno who attempted to enter their condominium, saying she only found out from television reports Thursday night.

Malacañang has also confirmed there is an ongoing investigation, but refused to say what the investigation was about.

“What I can confirm is that, before his death, Secretary Robredo was conducting a number of very sensitive investigations. But I will not comment on the specifics of what was being investigated or who,” said Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang. “I think lalabas din ‘yan but, for the moment, I will not comment on these investigations because many of them are in a very sensitive stage.” – Rappler.com