While millions are hungry, millions are wasted

Even as the survey report on millions of starving Filipinos is still fresh in the mind, news outlets are breaking out with their coverage on what appears to be a money-laundering attempt by a PNP general in Moscow. Six million pesos plus is a big amount of money, even at today's weakening currency. How come it found its way in the luggage of a visiting police officer?

This question must have been foremost in the minds of the Senate committee, now investigating this case. Will that body get the answer? Perhaps, if General De la Paz, the money courier, showed up in the hearing the other day the answer could have been brought to light. His no-show generated more questions. It deepened the suspicion that he has more rabbits up his sleeves.

In earlier interviews, De la Paz said the money was for contingency expenses. But this is not allowed under existing rules on government-subsidized travels. Who then allowed him to get hold of so much money? From what specific PNP program was it sourced? How come the general breezed through custom, no questions asked? There are questions and questions this controversy is likely to stir up. Will the truth finally let out?

Alas, truth is a wild wind under the current dispensation. Looking back at what happened in previous investigations, it's most likely that De la Paz, if he ever shows up in the Senate, will clam up like NEDA's Neri in the ZTE-NBN imbroglio. And that body would be helpless, what with the Supreme Court ruling that sealed Neri's mouth.

Committee chair Senator Santiago can huff and howl all she can and throw invectives here and there, but the truth would be as elusive as before. Nothing will come out of that show, one observer commented. Right he was - except a free publicity for senators. For them this is a bonus event considering that election is less than seven months away. Incidentally, have you not noticed some presidentiables who waxed eloquent in front of tv cameras during the hearing?

   Back to the De la Paz affair, there are speculations now being passed around in coffee shops. One is that the PNP fellow was just an errand boy of some highly placed personality who wants to stash money abroad for future use. The latter could be a powerful politician who wants to play it safe in the event there will be changing of the guards come 2010. Another is that the money could be De la Paz's himself, which he wanted to safe-keep in a foreign vault to avoid getting exposed in a life-style check. Whatever the truth, one wonders why there were millions of pesos in the hands of a police official who is not expected to own such amount, given the extent of his remuneration.

The strange thing about it all is that despite the expose, the PNP leadership has maintained a no-comment stance. Asked about it at the Senate hearing General Jesus Versoza, PNP's highest official, was evasive. This, plus his non-action - for such embarrassing faux pas deserves immediate action - seems to be the role of his organization in this affair. The impression is clear: Something fishy is going on in the police hierarchy.

   That situation, however, is not confined to that organization. Something fishy is also going on in other government offices whose notoriety when it comes to malpractices is so well-known that they need not be mentioned here. Indeed, it is for nothing that this country is reputedly among the most corrupt in Asia, the likely reason why so many people are poor and starving.

About 20 million Filipinos missed their meals once during the last three months. About 5 million more are malnourished. The irony is that millions of pesos surface here and there - and from airport to airport? - and nobody knows why. Millions changed hands on a multi-million broad band project; millions more were paid for a controversial railroad expansion thrust; another millions were unaccounted for due to double appropriation. Here in Cebu millions were overpaid for lampposts. Yet nobody got caught and penalized.

Now that Jocjoc Bolante will be coming back, will the culprits finally get caught and given the verdict they deserve? Like De la Paz's millions, the money he allegedly misspent could have fed a lot of his countrymen now languishing in hunger and ill-health.