FG invited to ZTE probe

The Senate will invite First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo to a hearing later this month as part of its investigation into the $329-million national broadband network (NBN) deal between the government and Chinese firm ZTE Corp.

Public hearings on the scandal were set to resume yesterday, but the Senate went into recess after President Arroyo cancelled the deal earlier this week.

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, chairman of the Blue Ribbon committee, said the hearings were suspended to allow senators to focus on gathering documents and other evidence.

“Not all investigations are done in front of the cameras,” Cayetano said.

“We are going 100 percent full steam ahead with this inquiry. We’ll have to get to the bottom of this mess to find out whether President Arroyo and her husband had anything to do with the fat kickbacks in the broadband deal.”

They agreed to resume the public inquiry on Oct. 25, and invited  the First Gentleman to explain his role in the deal and several Cabinet members to clarify the cancellation of the agreement.

He said Mr. Arroyo would be invited and subpoenaed should he snub the hearings.

More bickering

Senators are again at each other’s throats over the progress of the investigation into the $329-million national broadband network deal between the government and Chinese firm ZTE Corp.

Senate President Manuel Villar Jr. and Senator Cayetano are under fire from Senators Panfilo Lacson and Jamby Madrigal for supposedly becoming lukewarm on the NBN probe.

Madrigal even threatened to file a case against Cayetano before the Senate ethics committee chaired by his elder sister Pia for “suspending” the hearings allegedly because of the influence of a businessman.

Villar, Cayetano and Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan lashed back at Lacson and Madrigal, saying their tirades were misplaced. Cayetano said he set the next hearing on Oct. 25 and the first week of November so the committee could do its “homework” first.

Cayetano said his critics were driven by personal agenda and that some of them had presidential ambitions.

Lacson wanted to chair the Blue Ribbon committee but lost it to Cayetano as opposition senators split. Eight became the minority while six, led by Villar, formed a majority with the administration senators.  

Lacson said the Senate hearings on the botched NBN project could – and should – continue despite the absence of Cayetano as chairman of the committee tasked to lead in the investigation.

“Senate rules provide that a third of the committee’s membership can convene and call for a meeting. I am not going anywhere during the break, and I suppose at least one-third of the Blue Ribbon committee members are staying behind,” he said.

“We should not allow ourselves to be held hostage by whatever agenda and personal reasons of the chairman for not convening the committee for a hearing on the ZTE scam,” Lacson said.

He said even the purported lack of interest by some government men, like former National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) director general Romulo Neri and resigned elections chief Benjamin Abalos, in attending the next hearing should not hinder the Senate inquiry.

“With so many questions left unanswered and testimonies yet unheard, we must strike while the iron is hot,” Lacson stressed.

Lacson noted that the Senate continued its investigation of the “Hello, Garci” wiretap mess despite the lack of resource persons from the executive department.

“The integrity of the Senate as a whole should not be sacrificed because of the unethical conduct of a few. If Senators Villar and Cayetano have nothing to hide, their actions should speak for themselves. Their continued non-action speaks volumes in itself. The truth should not be stifled. The Filipino people deserve nothing less,” Madrigal said.

Cayetano said he could not understand why Madrigal was entertaining text messages and various rumors.

“I know most of the tycoons or whatever you call them in the country and none of them own me, none of them can dictate upon me,” Cayetano said, belying the accusation of Madrigal that he received $1 million to go slow on the NBN controversy.

He said people were free to check his campaign donors and businessman Enrique Razon was not one of them.

Villar also asserted that the Senate could not be manipulated to serve the needs of influential and powerful parties, especially in the conduct of Senate investigations of questionable transactions of government.

“Our sworn duty as senators is to serve and protect the interest of the Filipino people, and that included the 70 percent of the entire population who are poor. We remain committed to the pursuit of truth and to deliver quality legislation that will spell the difference in our people’s lives,” Villar said.

Pangilinan said the allegations against Villar and Cayetano were not true and “it appears that there are groups and individuals on both sides of the political fence who wish to dictate on the committee how it is to do its job with respect to the ZTE hearings.”

Sen. Manuel Roxas II, on the other hand, also urged the Palace to determine whether an NBN project would still be needed.

“We don’t need another broadband deal. Government just needs to serve our people well and do things right,” Roxas said.

“Perception of hunger among Filipinos is at its peak. International perception over corruption in the Philippines has worsened, with our ranking falling from 121st out of 180 most corrupt nations to 131st in the world,” he pointed out.