Palace hands off on $30-M extortion case vs DOTC exec

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang is keeping its distance from allegations of the Czech ambassador that a Metro Rail Transit official tried to demand $30 million in 2012 in exchange for a supply contract.

In a text message to reporters yesterday, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said: “It’s a DOTC (Department of Transportation and Communications) matter.”

 In an interview, DOTC spokesman Michael Arthur Sagcal dismissed yesterday the allegations of Czech Ambassador Josef Rychtar that the government did not act on the extortion complaint against Metro Rail Transit 3 general manager Al Vitangcol III.

“It is not true that no action was taken,” he said. “The DOTC conducted an administrative investigation into the matter.”

Sagcal said the DOTC never received a formal complaint from the Czech firm against Vitangcol and his group.

“However, the investigation yielded no findings in line with his allegations, since the scope of our authority is limited, and notably, he himself refused to cooperate officially,” he said.

Sagcal said the DOTC waited for one year for Inekon to substantiate their complaint against Vitangcol.

“We have been waiting for a formal complaint substantiating his claims for almost one year, when he first raised this issue informally,” he said.

Sagcal said the DOTC terminated its administrative investigation of Vitangcol and decided to wait for the criminal investigation of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in the absence of a formal complaint.

“Given his refusal to formalize his complaint, we should await the result of the NBI’s investigation instead, since it is the more proper agency to look into the issue,” he said.

Rychtar and Inekon officials have submitted statements to the NBI.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said it would be best if Rychtar cooperates with the investigation of the DOTC and the NBI.

“He claims to have a letter that he sent to the President,” he said. “The fastest way to know about it is to invite him so that he can talk. We know that he’s a diplomat. For us, since he talked to the media, isn’t it better if he talks in the investigation as well?” 

Lacierda said Rychtar has three versions of the $30-million alleged extortion attempt.

“What we’re asking for here is clarity,” he said.  “Actually, he (Rychtar) has three stories. So now, we want to know what your real story is. Let’s invite the Czech ambassador to finish this once and for all. – With Lawrence Agcaoili