June 6, 2008 · Posted in: Governance, Podcasts
Lacaba: Keep the NBN-ZTE issue alive
The Supreme Court decision upholding the executive privilege invoked by Romulo Neri on three key questions asked of him by senators abruptly put an end to the Senate investigation on allegations of bribery and overpricing that attended the government’s national broadband network project. While many expressed dismay with the way the ruling has impeded the quest for the truth on the NBN deal, not a few also heaved a sigh of relief as the probe, with the way senators had been conducting it, appeared not to be headed for any resolution anytime soon.
But two weeks ago, the Senate announced that it might consider resuming hearings after a new witness surfaced to divulge that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo supposedly secretly met with officials of the Chinese firm ZTE Corporation in Shenzhen, China in November 2006, months before it bagged the NBN project. The witness, identified only as “Alex,” even came out with photographs of the President with her husband, the First Gentleman, playing golf at the Shenzhen Golf Club. Even former House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr., who was with the First Couple during the Shenzhen visit, is being urged to testify everything that he knows about the NBN scandal.
In case the investigation continues, what should come out of the hearings in order that we come to an appropriate closure to the NBN fiasco? We solicited the views of some people to put the situation in proper perspective.
FOR poet and YES! magazine executive editor Jose ‘Pete’ Lacaba, the national broadband network (NBN) scandal had reached an early saturation point. Thus, he stresses that while no Senate hearing currently air, it is important to “keep the issues alive.”Journalists and civil society groups must continue to actively raise all sides of the issue, he says even as he points out that the key players involved must adhere to truth and transparency.On doubts regarding the credibility of Rodolfo Noel ‘Jun’ Lozada Jr. as a witness, Lacaba notes that “people who have had experience in corruption — whether it’s moderated or not — are even in a better position to talk about it because they know the inside story.”
Listen to Lacaba and his thoughts on how the latest scandal to plague the Arroyo administration should be resolved.
Length: 00:12:02
Language: English
File size: 11 MB
5 Responses to Lacaba: Keep the NBN-ZTE issue alive
jcc
June 8th, 2008 at 1:30 am
NOT A SATURATION POINT ISSUE
Credit it to the public who now discriminate whether an expose on government graft – is launched for higher virtues of love of the country and flag or just for sound bytes and political mileage.
With the graft and corruption as the forefront in the government since the inception of the Republic, Juan de la Cruz now believes that every administration is out to fleece the government treasury dry and any grand expose against the current government by those outside it, is seen mostly as an opportunity to look morally upright (“papogi effect”) so they can wrest the power from the present government and the “largesse” that comes with that power.
Mr. Lozada is not the only expert who can speak about government corruption. Every Filipino who reads the media everyday becomes an authority on government corruption. Juan de la Cruz is more authoritative on it because unlike Mr. Lozada, he does not belong to the “moderated greed” team now seeking approval of the public, and pleading for leniency because there are others more brigand than him.
Saturation point? I don’t think so. I think the Filipino people are finally catching up to the idea that politicians and government officials and their minions are working for themselves and not the Filipino people and their quarrel is for themselves and not for the welfare of the poor Juan de la Cruz.
nosi balasi
June 12th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
though the NBN-ZTE investigation was stopped by the supreme court decision favoring Neri’s executive privileged, the journalist and civil society groups or even the Filipino communities around the world should not let this issue blown away in the wind as if this not happened. i do not agree that the issue about NBN-ZTE reaches its saturation point, for it is just in the elasticity state. elasticity is proportion to stress/strain ratio proportion…and in order to reach saturation point or yield point, it is necessary to identify the deformation of a structural member once the loads and physical properties of the structural member are known, and this can be derived from the stress/strain relationships that have been already established. And before you reach the saturation point, you need to be in the yield point state spontaneously until the last stretch that will totally deformed from the original state…and if this will be deformed permanently…then we can say it is in saturation point stage…where the ultimate stress/strain relationships will no longer go up but to go down. Yes, Mr. Lacaba is very right, we should keep the issue alive. For this is what the present Government is doing, the loads & physical properties are known, they want to skip the stages of deformation, and they want the end point to come up immediately. As I explained on the stages of deformation, it is necessary to define the stress/strain relationships to get the saturation point or limit. So the poor Filipino Juan Dela Cruz will never been tired of every expose, for they were not able to know the stretch or bends of the issue, for it was totally covered or insulated by the present Government….and to the fact…the Government themselves were putting this words (tired, politicians are all the same, destabilization, and etc) to the mouths of every Filipino… Remember how they tried and failed to capture the HUMMING BIRD. And it just happened that this BIRD cannot be TAMED or LAMED. Imagine yourself to be in the shoes of LOZADA…what will you do??? do you think LOZADA is enjoying his life…a big NO.
Pwede pa si Clarissa Ocampo, she really enjoying her life…being close to the first family before anything else happened.
Journalist should check the relativity(in blood relation or a circle of the family) of LOZADA to any politicians that is in position then compare him to Clarissa Ocampo…in terms of conflict of interest.
jcc
June 13th, 2008 at 12:08 am
Saturation point – the point at which no more can be added.
Reaching an early saturation point is a misnomer.
I think people seem to have lost whatever interest they have on the ZBN-ZTE scandal not because the issue has reached its maximum stress load (elastic point), (per nosi balasi’s treatise) but the public have grown weary and tired of these esposes.
They also see that those clowns behind those esposes are no different from the people they were trying to get rid of. That replacing one set of brigands with another another team of brigands would not matter much.
So I think Congress seems to have lost whatever steam it has initially in the case because it is now reading the mind of the public correctly and with the recent SC rebuff, though for wrong reason, it has been cowered into complete submission.
nosi balasi
June 17th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Journalists should keep the NBN-ZTE issue alive, though it is not the hottest current issue…but keeping it alive will make those corrupt officials aware that there’s an eye watching over them…like the issue of Fertilizer Fund and the conversion of Education Fund (both happened before the 2004 elections…which really affects the whole nation this year…rice crisis early this year, and many schools could not open for classes due to lack of funds and etc…Journalists should not stop covering these issues, so that those speculators not residing in the Philippines will reach and feel the issues. Highlight the rice shortage due to the Fertilizer Fund expose, the Education System is failing due to conversion of Education Fund etc…by not stopping, though it is unpopular specially for those people not residing in the Philippines and those people who get favors from the present administration…the general public will believe that the present Government are not doing anything to make the lives of each Filipino people lighter. And it will be right to support the people who sacrificed their personal lives for the benefit of all i.e. Jun Lozada…
nosi balasi
June 23rd, 2008 at 3:31 pm
for comparison purposes only…both are no good, but which is good to keep.
Erap Corruptions:
1) Jueteng payola
2) P130 Million (as may be seen from the affidavit of Luis Singson-impeachment complaint)
3) Participation in the real estate business at Vermont Park Exec Vill Antipolo
4) PAGCOR granted Best Worls Gaming & Ent. Corp to operate the online Bingo
5) BW stock manipulation
6) Appointed more than hundred kumpadres and kaibigans
7) Participation of personal & family business
8) Distribution of 52 Luxury Vehicles to cabinet members
9) Appointing certain cabinet members to another office or employment
Reference: http://www.philsol.nl/A00b/Erap-Complaint.htm
List of Alleged Corruption Cases Against Gloria Arroyo
1. NBN ZTE Scandal
2. Millions of bribe money to Congressmen and Governors (October 2007)
3. Cheating in 2004 Elections (Hello Garci)
4. Joc Joc Bolante Case (Fertilizer Scam, P728 Million)
5. Jose Pidal Bank Account (Unexplained Wealth, P200 Million)
6. Nani Perez Power Plant Deal ($2 Million)
7. Use of Road User’s Tax for Campaigning
8. Billion Peso Macapagal Boulevard (Overprice of P532 Million)
9. Juetengate (Illegal Numbers game kickbacks)
10. Extra Judicial Killings
11. Arroyo Moneys in Germany (Exposed by Senator Cayetano)
12. General Garcia and Other Military Men
13. Billion Peso Poll Automation contract (P1.3 Billion)
14. Northrail Project($503 Million)
15. Maguindanao Results of 2007 Elections (Zubiri, Bedol)
16. NAIA-3
17. Venable Contract (Norberto Gonzales)
18. Swine Scam (Exposed by Atty. Harry Roque) – Details in this link http://www.newsflash.org/2004/02/hl/hl107311.htm
Reference: http://arroyocorruption.pbwiki.com/Joc+Joc+Bolante+Case