Drilon: Decision on Napoles to allow Ombudsman to 'seek justice w/o delay'

MANILA, Philippines - Senate President Franklin Drilon on Monday said his decision to not compel Janet Napoles in the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the pork barrel scam is meant to allow the Ombudsman to seek justice 'with dispatch and without delay.'

"It is not a question of which institution is supreme," Drilon said at the general membership meeting of the Makati Business Club where he delivered a keynote speech.

Drilon said Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales advised the Senate to defer its decision to summon Napoles, tagged as the mastermind of the multi-billion scam, in the ongong hearing.

He said Morales recently told him through a letter that she is 'not inclined to modify' her position that it is not yet time for Napoles to testify in the hearing.

"I would rather err on the side of prudence," Drilon said.

Senate Blue Ribbon Committee chair Sen. Teofisto Guingona III earlier called for the issuance of a subpoena for Napoles, but Drilon, who has the power to sign subpoenas, followed the recommendation of Morales.

Speaking before the business community, the senate president said the fate of the country's democratic institutions are at stake in the ongoing investigation of the priority development assistance fund scam.

"I am confident that in time we can purge the culture of corruption," he said.