THE investigation into allegedly anomalous flood-control and other infrastructure projects to be deliberate, methodical and thorough, must be free from obstruction, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said at the weekend, as he rejected Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano’s characterization of the probe as a ‘striptease’ without evidence.
Lacson said Cayetano’s remarks only exposed his ignorance of how investigations into complex corruption cases, including those involving infrastructure projects in Taguig City, are conducted.
‘It only proves Senator Cayetano’s ignorance of how an investigation of flood control anomalies and other sophisticated corruption cases works. It must be deliberate, methodical and thorough; not hasty nor sloppy,’ he said in a post on X late Saturday, referring to Cayetano’s ‘striptease’ characterization.
Cayetano had insisted in a social media livestream that Lacson’s revelations on the anomalous projects in Taguig and the possible irregularities behind it are ‘like a striptease’ with no real evidence.
Lacson and his team have formally submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman at least 45 case studies backed by official documents detailing ‘systemic anomalies’ in flood control infrastructure projects in the Cayetano family-led city.
The Office of the Ombudsman has since launched a fact-finding investigation into the allegations involving the projects in Taguig.
Lacson, a veteran intelligence officer and former National Police chief who used his investigative skills to scrutinize national budgets, also stressed the importance of going where the evidence leads, instead of obstructing it.
This was after Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla narrated in his radio program Saturday how Taguig City Hall personnel tried to prevent an Ombudsman team from conducting its investigation Friday.
Remulla said city hall personnel tried to argue with Ombudsman investigators and prevent them from flying a drone to take photographs of the area. Police personnel detailed to the Ombudsman team subsequently arrested the City Hall personnel involved, Remulla said.
‘Kahapon meron kaming investigator, sinasaway. Sinasaway sila, kahit nagpakilalang taga-Office of the Ombudsman, sinasaway pa rin, ayaw silang patrabahuhin. Kasi ang drone, paliliparin ang drone para kumuha ng pictures, ayaw nila paliparin. May pulis na detailed sa amin, e di pinapulis namin[On Friday, our investigators were being obstructed by the City Hall personnel. Even when the investigators identified themselves as being from my office, they refused to let them do their work. But my team had police personnel detailed to them, and they dealt with the city hall personnel],’ Remulla said in his radio program.