Utter wickedness
The public testimony of Pampanga Governor and Catholic priest Ed Panlilio that he was given half a million pesos after being summoned to
According to the Governor–Priest from Pampanga, not even his effort to inform the Malacañang personnel of who he was and the fact that he was not a political ally could dissuade the guy from delivering the freshly printed thousand peso bills amounting to five hundred thousand thoughtfully packaged in a small paper bag.
Governor Ed can be thankful that the money was not in an envelope or he might be charged with envelopmental politics the same way they accuse Journalists of envelopmental journalism. They give the bribes but we get the raps!
The story of Governor Ed is disturbing for several reasons. If the Arroyo administration did indeed give out several hundred millions of pesos in cash to congressmen and governors either as a political payoff or as an early Christmas gift, the question is what legal basis did Malacañang use in doing so?
And where did the money come from? Are we going to discover soon that another government trust fund has temporarily been realigned until it is replenished or “restored” as a Bicolano politician once said?! Which Jueteng Lord will be tasked in producing the incentives for Mercenary politicians?
I publicly confess ignorance of such policy and it would be good if Malacañang can explain and educate us ordinary citizens what law provides for such cash gifts, is it in the National budget annually, and does the COA have control or monitoring of such funds? Does the money come from the Presidential intelligence funds or from her social funds?
If none of this can be legally and fully explained then we ought to bring up the matter before the Blue Ribbon committee of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano. Given the fact that by a rough computation we are talking about several hundred million pesos this may be the first plunder case that will involve congressmen and governors by the dozen!
It was equally disturbing to read that the “money giver” made no difference and had no delicadeza to distinguish between a priest and a politician. Neither did he make any difference between a political ally and an independent.
It was as if the guy was saying “pare-pareho na lang kayong may presyo or mukhang pera (You’re all the same, you all have a price you can all be bought).”
The reality in the situation of bribe givers is that the giver often represents the evil of society. Sadly evil perceives evil. In the eyes of evil people everyone has a price and are just as corrupt as they are.
Sad to say, I am also disappointed that Governor Panlilio chose to accept the money and justified his “compromise” by quoting the justification of the late Cardinal Sin who accepted donations from the Marcos government while continuing to be critical of the dictatorship.
Father Ed or Governor Panlilio may not have realized that because of his compromise Cardinal Sin had to deal with a divided clergy many of whom abandoned their vows and embraced the revolutionary movement. Perhaps he did not come upon what was written in the book of proverbs 15: 16 “Better a little with the fear of the Lord, than great wealth with turmoil.” Unfortunately what father Ed got from Malacanang was loose change.
As a human being I can understand Governor Panlilio’s pragmatic perspective but as a priest and the “miraculous victor” in the last gubernatorial election one would expect that Father Ed’s faith as well as integrity would cling to God’s faithful provision and not the paper money of the ungodly. Being new and taken by surprise, we can excuse Governor Panlilio but I would counsel him to read up on what happened to many of “God’s anointed” who got into alliances and compromise under pressure.
Father Ed would have done better by calling on the God fearing Kapampangans to pray, to be part of, and to contribute to building up their fellow Kapampangans and their beloved province. The people of Pampanga are a rich, generous and Godly tribe. Perhaps all they need is for Father Ed to lead and not to compromise. Money that comes directly from the people is the true people’s money.
All is not lost however. Having told the tale Father Ed has confirmed that the current administration has indeed governed on a cash basis. No amount of denial among the mercenaries can cover up what we the people have long known. that indeed Jezebel and Judas have become role models for politicians. But do not lose hope because we all know their destiny.
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“Blessed is he who, having nothing to say, refrains from giving wordy evidence of the fact.”
Under the present situation, the less she is seen or heard from, the better it is for Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. In an apparent attempt to address criticisms hurled at her office, the Ombudsman made the mistake of citing politics as a thorn that forces her to play ball.
The Ombudsman also cited figures which upon writing merely gives critics more opportunity to attack her or simply dismiss her claims. If the Office of the Ombudsman had consistently publicized their work and their achievements since she took over perhaps they would have established some credibility and sustained the goodwill she once had with media.
Unfortunately, Gutierrez or her staff failed miserably in establishing their commitment to pursuing justice without fear or favor. Their statistical data loses impact in the absence of transparent and independent legal action against controversial figures. Assuming she doesn’t know, the most damaging case to her office was the one involving former secretary Nani Perez. Very little information was made public and now very late to redeem or repair the damage it has done to the Office of the Ombudsman.
It will take more than interviews and presscons, not even a PR company can correct what for most Filipinos is essentially a question of integrity and independence. The Office of the Ombudsman has both, they simply have to show it rather than talk about it.
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