EVEN with the appeal of the religious sect Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC), Malacañang refused to budge on its position not to interfere with the investigation of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI).
INC had called on the ICI to make its hearings public to ensure the credibility of its recommendations on cases which should be filed against contractors as well as government officials and personnel involved in anomalous public works.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Wednesday that while President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. shares the position of the INC, he maintained his position not to interfere with its affairs.
‘The President, in all circumstances, wants transparency. In all investigations, there should be transparency, nothing is hidden,’ she said in Filipino in a press briefing in Malacañang last Wednesday.
‘But how the ICI will do this, how it can be made public, how they will be transparent and to what extent, that is up to the ICI,’ she added.
INC is considered an influential religious group since its members are known for exercising bloc voting during elections, which gives advantage to the candidates it will endorse.
When asked about the move in Congress to pass a bill, which will give more powers to the ICI, Castro said that the President will study the proposal.
‘Maybe we should see first the detailed information [of the bill] so we can study it and if it is necessary to issue a certificate for urgency [for the bill]. That is what the President will do after he reads what they will [propose],’ Castro said.
There were rumors that one member of the three-man ICI already wanted to resign due to supposed lack of powers. Castro said the ICI already denied that rumor.
Created by Executive Order (EO) No. 94, the three-member ICI was tasked to investigate substandard and non-existent flood control projects.
The creation of the ICI drew criticism from some groups since its role was only to recommend to concerned government agencies the prosecution of the involved individuals or parties.
Castro, however, defended the ICI’s creation, saying it will fast-track the investigation and filing of charges against the erring parties.
‘Would they want only the Ombudsman to work [on these cases]? So how long will it take us to finish a case?’ she said.
‘So, there really needs to be an independent commission that will focus and collect, investigate documents so that when they are submitted and recommended for filing, they can just review them,’ she added.