‘Napoles may have no choice but to tell all’

MANILA, Philippines - As she rues her first days in detention, businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles may have no choice but to tell all in the P10-billion pork barrel scam to which prominent names, including lawmakers and magistrates, had been linked.

Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam”Aquino IV voiced the observation yesterday as he expressed confidence that any information from Napoles would greatly help authorities get to the bottom of the controversy, which has sparked the biggest show of public outrage against corruption under the Aquino administration.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is gathering more evidence against Napoles in connection with her alleged connivance with some officials in skimming billions of pesos from the Priority Development Assistance  Fund (PDAF), commonly known as pork barrel.

“Now that Napoles has surrendered, she can reveal who else is involved while the DOJ and the Ombudsman are reviewing the evidence in order to determine who should be charged,” Aquino said.

“Once Napoles tells all, the investigation of the DOJ and the Ombudsman will reveal more evidence,” Aquino said.

The DOJ is studying the possibility of making Napoles a state witness if she can establish that she is not the most guilty in the case.

Aquino stressed even high officials should be prosecuted if they are proven to have colluded with Napoles in stealing from PDAF.

“It is incumbent upon the officials to go after all who are involved in this crime. The government must do everything that it can to prosecute all those responsible for this to reform a system that has long been corrupted,” Aquino said.

At Malacañang, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte brushed aside allegations that Napoles would be used to discredit the opposition.

“They can continue to say what they want to say. What is clear to us is, first: the government’s aim is to know the truth. Second, bring to justice those who erred and give them the punishment that is in accordance with the law,” Valte said. – Aie Balagtas-See, Alexis Romero