A DEPUTY minority leader of the House of Representatives on Monday expressed disappointment over the exclusion of a bill that institutionalizes an Independent Commission Against Infrastructure Corruption (Icaic) from the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council’s (Ledac) legislative agenda.
House Deputy Minority Leader Leila M. de Lima noted the urgency of House Bill 4453 amid challenges in ongoing investigations.
As Executive Order 94 ‘falls short of providing the powers,’ a group of lawmakers is urging Congress to fast-track the passage of House Bill 4453, which seeks to establish a truly independent commission against corruption in infrastructure projects, amid growing public outrage over alleged anomalies in flood control and other public works.
EO 94 issued by President Marcos created the Independent Commission on Infrastructure that is mandated to investigate corruption in flood control and other public works projects.
‘As much as we welcome the inclusion of some of our priority bills in Ledac, we are disappointed that a very crucial measure is missing-our proposed bill to create a stronger, transparent, and truly independent commission to probe the anomalous flood control and other infrastructure projects and hold accountable all those involved,’ de Lima, the nominee of the party-list group Mamamayang Liberal, said.
De Lima noted that with the suspension of the House Infrastructure Committee’s joint inquiry, the Independent Commission for Infrastructure’s (ICI) reluctance to livestream its hearings despite its limited powers, and the uncertainty surrounding the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s investigation owing to the impending resignation of Sen. Panfilo Lacson as chairman, the swift passage of House Bill 4453 should be fast-tracked.
‘If the President is truly serious about holding accountable those responsible for the biggest corruption scandal in our country’s history, he should certify this proposed law as urgent. If he delays or simply ignores it, it casts doubt on his sincerity in pursuing accountability for corrupt officials and government syndicates,’ she added.
In a recent meeting, the Ledac adopted a new Common Legislative Agenda (CLA) that includes 44 priority bills.
De Lima and her co-authors of HB 4453 are hopeful for the swift passage of HB 4453, as House Speaker Faustino ‘Bojie’ Dy III was ‘very open and receptive’ about the bill.
‘I actually brought it up already with the new Speaker. And he’s very open and very receptive about it, that he will push for its speedy enactment and that he would even try to convince the President to certify it as urgent,’ De Lima earlier said.
De Lima also expressed concern over efforts to mislead or distract public attention from the corruption issue.
‘Many cases of corruption and collusion have already been exposed. But there are also those who cause confusion and muddy the waters-people who spread fake news, those who attack the very individuals pursuing the corrupt and exposing government wrongdoing, and some who make grandstanding suggestions without basis. For what purpose? For their own personal agendas, to distract us and divert attention from our real goal-which is to uncover the full truth,’ she said.
Growth retardant
PRESIDENT Marcos warned that systemic corruption in flood control projects could derail the country’s growth and deny Filipinos access to basic services, stressing that accountability and reforms are crucial to national progress.
In Episode 5 of his ‘Bagong Pilipinas Podcast’ released on Monday, Marcos said his decision to raise the issue in his fourth State of the Nation Address in July was driven by the magnitude of the problem.
‘The reason I brought it up and made it part of the national discourse was quite simply because this could not go on,’ Marcos said.
He said the impact of corruption is not only financial but also life-threatening.
‘There is a great deal of damage that has been caused, not only financial damage or economic damage, but damage, actual damage to people’s lives,’ Marcos said.
‘A lousy flood control project that collapsed during the flood that killed a family-I mean, how can you live with that? I can’t live with it.’
At the same time, Marcos said resigning from government service will not clear officials linked to the alleged irregularities in flood control projects, but stressed that accountability must be established through due process.
‘No, that’s not enough. That’s not enough,’ Marcos said in his latest podcast episode when asked if resigning allows officials to be free of culpability.
‘There is a great deal of damage that has been caused, not only financial damage or economic damage, but damage, actual damage to people’s lives,’ he added.
Marcos also said cases related to anomalies in government projects must be backed by strong evidence to ensure only those truly guilty are punished.
‘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,’ he said.
He cautioned against rushing prosecutions.
‘What will happen? We brought it. Our evidence is incomplete. Our evidence is vague. But we forced it. The case was passed. Can you imagine? I think that would be much, much, much worse,’ he said.
Marcos acknowledged public anger over corruption but said due process is necessary.
‘It’s understandable. Because it’s the sins committed-and I call them sins, it’s no longer mistakes or corruption. The sins they committed, it’s hard to swallow. But if we.we are a nation of laws, we have to follow the law. Otherwise, whatever we do is not legitimate,’ he said.
The President earlier called out irregularities in flood control projects, triggering a broad review of public works spending.
Some groups have called for immediate arrests, but Malacañang has stressed the importance of careful evidence-gathering.