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MANILA, Philippines – “Sa lahat ng pulitikong narinig ninyo, may nagsabi bang kumuha sila ng pera? Wala. Ang lakas ng loob ng mga gago!” (Of all the politicians you’ve heard from, who admitted they stole money? None. These idiots are so shameless!)
Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago criticized her colleagues implicated in the pork barrel scam, questioning their strategy of airing their defense before the media through privilege speeches.
While Senators Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr and Jinggoy Estrada denied the allegations against them in their speeches, Santiago believes their strategy is not to earn acquittal but to downgrade the charge against them to malversation.
“What they’re hoping to do is have the charge of plunder reduced to malversation. The penalty will not be as severe as plunder. [If they are charged with plunder], automatically, they will be suspended from the post of senator and cannot report to the Senate,” Santiago said in a press briefing after a speech at the EDSA Shangri-la hotel on Tuesday, January 21.
Watch Santiago’s full speech here:
Revilla, Estrada, and Santiago’s fierce rival Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile face a plunder complaint before the Ombudsman for allegedly funneling their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) to fake non-governmental organizations of supposed mastermind Janet Napoles in exchange for kickbacks.
The former trial court judge said that if the Ombudsman only charges the senators with malversation before the Sandiganbayan, they will be allowed to post bail.
“I don’t think they’re working for dismissal as much as [a] downgrade [of charges] because they hope to remain in the Senate. If it’s malversation, they won’t face any dire consequences even before the start of the trial proper,” Santiago added.
Santiago has a theory why the accused senators are resorting to privilege speeches on top of defending themselves through counter-affidavits submitted to the Ombudsman.
“They want to pressure the Ombudsman in the guise of public opinion,” she said.
“[It] raises the issue of whether the persons in interest, meaning the accused, do not have full faith in their counteraffidavits, and seek to use public opinion to pressure the Ombudsman to resolve the cases in their favor.”
She said the Ombudsman’s resolution on the case will be “seismic.”
Santiago’s comments a day after Revilla delivered a privilege speech maintaining his innocence in the scam and attacking President Benigno Aquino III for allegedly personally appealing to senators to convict former Chief Justice Renato Corona.
In September 2013, Estrada delivered his own privilege speech lambasting what he called the administration’s “selective justice.”
Why complain only now?
Santiago also questioned the timing of the supposed bombshells of Revilla and Estrada accusing the administration of influencing the Corona impeachment trial.
She, Senator Bongbong Marcos, and former Senator Joker Arroyo were the only ones out of 23 senators who voted to acquit Corona in May 2012.
“Kung suspetsa na pala nila na mali ang ginawang pinatawag sila, bakit ‘di sila nagreklamo noon pa? Bakit ngayon lang sila nagrereklamo? Kasi tinutukoy sila sa Napoles scam?”
(If they already suspected that it was wrong for the President or Cabinet officials to invite them to meet about the trial, why didn’t they complain back then? Why are they only complaining now? Because they are implicated in the Napoles scam?)
Despite Malacañang’s denials of bribery, Santiago said it is “a relevant question of law” to ask why the 3 senators who voted for acquittal were not given additional funds sourced from the controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad had admitted giving senators P50 million each months after the Corona trial but denied the money was a bribe.
Santiago retorted, “Tatlo kami: ako, si Senator Joker Arroyo, Senator Bongbong Marcos. Wala kami ni piso. ‘Di kami sinabihan meron palang ganoon. Is it my deodorant or what?”
(There were 3 of us: me, Senator Joker Arroyo, Senator Bongbong Marcos. We didn’t get even a single peso. We weren’t told there was this DAP.)
She added: “Tapos sasabihin nilang walang bribery? Isn’t your intelligence insulted by that kind of reasoning?” (Then they’ll say there was no bribery?)
‘Nation of kleptocrats’
In her speech before the Philippine Psychiatric Association, Santiago used her signature humor to rip her colleagues.
“Ang gara-gara nila, pasikat. ‘Pag bukas ng bibig nila, wrong grammar lumalabas.” (These senators are so flashy but when they open their mouths, what comes out is wrong grammar.)
She criticized the qualifications and performance of senators and congressmen.
“To be a lawmaker now means to get your pork barrel, and never attend session. Or if you attend session, member ng committee on silence!” (You’re a member of the committee on silence.)
With its pork-tainted image, the Senate was a favorite target of Santiago.
“Change the name. Don’t call it the Senate of the Philippines. Just call it Acute Psychiatric Ward.”
“Is it true there’s a measles outbreak? If there’s an outbreak, please tell the measles patients to go take a walk at the Senate.”
She then raised a question to the doctors in the audience, and to voters listening.
“This is a nation of kleptocrats. What do you say, mental health specialists? Why are we so fond of electing kleptocrats? What is their sex appeal?” – Rappler.com
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