“Make haste slowly” is a Latin phrase, festing lente, that means to proceed quickly but with careful deliberation and caution, rather than rushing and making mistakes, ensuring quality and avoiding errors that would ultimately slow you down.
Does President Marcos believe in “festing lente”?
Despite public clamor to immediately jail all contractors, government officials, and other culprits in the flood control corruption cases involving at least P350 billion, President Marcos Jr. said that he does not want a rushed and haphazard investigation, as that may backfire on his administration’s anti-corruption campaign, according to the Philippine Inquirer.
“Much of what we have heard are allegations. We have to prove it. You don’t want to go after people who are innocent. Now, we know many of these people are not innocent. But if you’re going to bring them to court, you must have a very strong case,” Marcos told Philip Cu-Unjieng of the Manila Bulletin in an October 5 interview.
The President cautioned that rushing to file weak cases that might later be dismissed would only set back the government’s anti-corruption drive.
If we have incomplete and unclear evidence but we still pursued the filing of cases “I think that would be much, much, much worse,” he said.
He pointed out that “some of the guilty ones, they’re trying to derail the system.”
INDEPENDENT COMMISSION FOR INFRASTRUCTURE CREATED
On September 11, 2015, President Marcos issued Executive Order No. 94, creating the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to investigate all the questionable government infrastructure work, especially flood control projects, during the past 10 years. The ICI would then recommend the filing of charges against those involved.
According to the Order “The Administration is firmly committed to maintain honesty and integrity in public service, and will take decisive measures to repress and hold accountable government officials and employees, and any other individual, who engage in graft, corrupt practices, or other acts that undermine the national interest and betray the people’s trust.”
As a recommendatory body, the ICI will, acting on complaint or motu proprio (on its own motion), “hear, investigate, receive, gather, and evaluate evidence, intelligence reports, and information, against all government officials and employees, and any other individual, involved in anomalies, irregularities, and misuse of funds in the planning, financing, and implementation of government flood control and other infrastructure projects nationwide,”
Marcos said: “We will not interfere with their work. Of course, we will be in discussion with them, asking what has happened, what they have found, and what the next steps are. But we will not direct how they conduct their investigations; that will be entirely up to them.”
Marcos appointed former Supreme Court Justice Andres Reyes Jr. as chairperson of the ICI. The commission members include former Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson and SGV & Co. country managing partner Rossana Fajardo. Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong was also designated as the commission’s special adviser and investigator, but he later resigned.
The public wants the ICI to open its hearings to the public for the sake of transparency. However, the ICI is reluctant to do so, saying that it wanted to “avoid trial by publicity and will not allow itself to be used for any political leverage or agenda by any individual or group.”
To date, the ICI has made one interim report urging the Office of the Ombudsman to recommend the filing of graft charges against 18 individuals including former congressman Elizaldy Co of Ako Bicol Party over the substandard flood control project in Oriental Mindoro worth P289.5 million.
The Ombudsman is not simply going to file charges. It will have to study the charges and determine if they will fly. That will take a lot of time.
Justice Secretary Remulla reportedly wants to be the Ombudsman. Why? Some are wondering whether he wants the office to go after Vice President Sara Duterte so that she will be disqualified from taking over the presidency in case something happens to Marcos before he finishes his term on June 30, 2028. Others, like me, believe that that is not the case. I knew his father. We were schoolmates at the U.P. College of Law.
In his second podcast, Marcos said that the erring actions of a few public servants do not reflect the integrity of the entire government. “You cannot paint everyone in government with the same brush as all of these corrupt operators that you see in government.” Marcos emphasized that many government employees are making serious sacrifices—such as spending time away from their families and even using their own money—in the name of public service.
LGU ACCEPTANCE OF PROJECT TO BE REQUIRED
“I remember that when I was a governor, no project could be considered completed unless it was accepted by the local government. We are reinstating this rule—it was removed by the previous administration—and we are putting it back because it is one of our best safeguards,” he added.
“I was a little surprised to learn that the rule requiring local government officials to formally ‘accept’ completed national government projects had been removed. Previously, mayors, governors, and even barangay captains had to acknowledge and inspect the project,” Marcos said
Marcos is optimistic that the flood control mess can be fixed by sending to jail the contractors and government officials involved.
But can he send them to jail? They can delay the process. They can buy investigators, prosecutors, and judges. If they cannot buy them, they can scare them and their families.
Ana ngaruden?
Atty. Emmanuel Samonte Tipon was a Fulbright and Smith-Mundt scholar to Yale Law School where he obtained a Master of Laws degree specializing in Constitutional Law. He graduated from the University of the Philippines with a Bachelor of Laws degree. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, New York, and the Philippines. He practices federal law, with emphasis on immigration law and appellate federal criminal defense. He was the Dean and a Professor of Law of the College of Law, Northwestern University, Philippines. He has written law books and legal articles for the world’s most prestigious legal publisher Westlaw and writes columns for newspapers. He wrote the best-seller “Winning by Knowing Your Election Laws.” Listen to The Tipon Report on KNDI 1270 AM band every Thursday at 8:00 a.m. in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is considered the most witty, interesting, and useful radio show in Hawaii. Atty. Tipon was born in Laoag City, Philippines. Cell Phone (808) 225-2645. E-Mail: filamlaw@yahoo.com. Website: https://www.tiponlaw.com.
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