No to a closed door meeting with the DOJ

Turn on your radios and listen to the commentators or read the local and national news dailies and you will find out that the talk of the town is focused on the list that pork scam operator Janet Lim Napoles supposedly gave to Department of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.

It's been nearly a month since the DOJ Secretary extracted that highly-damaging list from JLN, which she hinted to the media that it was "explosive." If you recall the elections of yore, most politicians would announce a coming "bomba" against his or her opponent in the miting de avance so that there will be people going to their meetings.

But as of this writing, we've only heard of more cries from people asking the DOJ chief to already expose the contents of that list. If many pundits think the list is "explosive," it could only contain the names of Pres. Aquino's political allies. If that list contained only the names of oppositionists, they could have long ago blared it out or leaked it to the media. More often than not, these exposes' are purposely "leaked" to the media.

But what about Malacañang Palace? The Philippine Star's headline last Tuesday blared, "Palace on Janet list: It's up to De Lima." Come now is it really up to the DOJ Secretary? The news report went: Malacañang spokesman Sec. Herminio Coloma said, "Public officials associated with the administration will be treated in the same manner as all others. Their alleged involvement in anomalies will be scrutinized thoroughly to ascertain whether there is sufficient evidence to file appropriate charges against them."

How I wish this statement was true. But we already know how Malacañang reacts to corruption issues when it comes to its political allies or people under the Executive Branch of the government. Our case in point is that US$30 million extortion attempt for the Metro Rail Transit 3 expansion project. Here, no less than Czech Ambassador Josef Rychatar accused MRT general manager Al Vitangcol of attempted bribery.

This was a case of where there is smoke. There must be a fire as the smoke in this corruption case has not dissipated. But instead of firing Vitangcol or at least temporarily suspending him, Malacañang continues to hold on to him, even if presidential sister Maria Elena "Ballsy" Aquino Cruz was already cleared of this by the Czech Ambassador himself. So do you expect us to believe what Sonny Coloma is saying when it is clear that Malacañang would defend its political allies to the hilt?

I just heard over DZMM radio that Sen. Serge Osmeña III called for a closed door meeting with Department of Justice Sec. Leila de Lima with the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee to discuss this very sensitive issue. Come now, a closed-door meeting with the potential crooks in the Senate who may be involved in this pork scam? At this point, it is already too late in the hour for the Senate to conduct a closed door meeting with the DOJ Secretary. If you ask me, it is running out of time because the Filipino people are already uneasy for having been kept in the dark vis-à-vis the list.

Remember that day in 2001 when, at the height of the impeachment trial of then Pres. Joseph "Erap" Estrada, the principal issue was whether to open a potentially "explosive" envelop or not, which could pin down the President? The majority in the Senate voted not to open the mysterious envelop and thus, the prosecutors walked out of the Senate Trial Court and triggered EDSA 2.

It was then that an irate mob of Filipinos marched towards Malacañang Palace because they vowed that they would bodily remove Pres. Erap from his perch in Malacañang. It was then that Erap crossed the Pasig River to safety and the rest, as they say, is history. Today, we are still waiting for the DOJ Secretary to expose that list but other equally criminal cases are waiting in the wings to be exposed.

Most notable among them is the Malampaya scam, which is totally different from the pork scam, but we believe that it involves the same criminals whom we call "honorable". Jueteng whistle blower Sandra Cam also has another list of crooks whom she says benefited from the P10 billion pork scam stating that 80% in this list contains the names of the allies of Pres. Aquino. In her list are 16 senators, and she said three of them already "graduated" from the Senate. But why hasn't Sandra Cam exposed this list, I really don't know. For sure, she is using that list as a bargaining chip.

But let me emphasize once more that at this point in time, the Senate has lost its moral ascendancy to investigate this case. So it should never, and I mean never call for a closed door conference with the DOJ Secretary lest they get the ire of an angry Filipino nation.

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