Once again, we are seeing proof of the saying that truth will find its way out, however one tries to block it.
We are referring to the Paolo Duterte- Charlie Tan drug connection.
Paolo is the son of President Duterte and is the vice mayor of Davao City. Charlie Tan, according to news reports, is a Taiwanese businessman who does a lot of business in Davao.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson’s privilege speech last Wednesday on the corruption at the Bureau of Customs was indeed explosive. As Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano said, Lacson’s speech “has exposed more actionable information regarding corruption in BOC compared to Sen. Richard Gordon’s endless hours of monologue and one-man show hearings.” Sen. Ping Lacson delivering his expose of corruption in the Bureau of Customs. Photo from pinglacson.net
Secretary de Lima. Still vetting the list.Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said she is still “vetting” the names of people in the list given to her by pork barrel queen Janet Napoles.
“You just have to trust me that I’m not gonna do that na isa-sanitize ko yung list. Pangako ko po yan sa taumbayan na hindi ko yan gagawin na isa-sanitize. Pangako ko rin sa taumbayan na gagawin ko yung mandato in a very responsible and prudent manner . Kaya kailangan munang magkaroon ng vetting,” De Lima was quoted to have said.
Malacañang supports De Lima’s non-disclosure of the Napoles list while she is still “vetting” the names in it.
Update: The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported that Lacson has accepted Aquino’s offer to be the Rehabilitation Czar.
The Rehabilitation CzarIt has been reported that President Aquino is considering former Sen. Panfilo Lacson to head the awesome task of rebuilding part of Visayas devastated by typhoon Yolanda.
The report has not yet been confirmed by Malacañang but if it’s true, that would be an indication that Aquino understands the gravity of the situation and the challenges of the rebuilding of the ruined and shattered communities, most especially in Leyte and Samar.
Let’s hope that partisan politics, particularly the 2016 presidential race, do not again get in the way of this more urgent task. Aquino fumbled bigtime in dealing with immediate impact of the Yolanda-created crisis but he can still redeem himself in the reconstruction of the destroyed communities.
If it’s not Lacson, it is hoped that he does not make the mistake of giving the job of the reconstruction czar to retired Army Gen. Eduardo del Rosario, executive director of National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, the body that was supposed to oversee efforts in coping with disasters but acted helpless at the time when they were needed most.
Rep. Jun Abaya:LP’s man for DILGThe battle over the position of Secretary of Interior and Local government, left vacant by the death of Secretary Jesse Robredo in a plane crash last week, intensifies between the Balay (Liberal Party-Mar Roxas) and Samar (Vice President Jejomar Binay and Executive Secretary Jojo Ochoa) factions.Lacson at DILG: not good for Mar Roxas 2016 plans
We saw posted in Facebook last week a news item about Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson confirming his interest in the position of DILG secretary, the effect of which was in very bad taste.
A closer look at the news item, however, showed that the date was June 2012 after President Aquino announced that two senators are being eyed for a cabinet position after their elected term expires in June 2013.
When asked if they were Lacson and Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, Aquino replied, ““Those two in particular.”
Statement of Sen. Panfilo Lacson at his press conference Monday, March 28, 2011:
Photo by Malaya Unang una sa lahat I’d like to thank the members of the media for allowing me a quiet weekend with my family. I thought that was the best day of my life with my family because it was a quiet weekend. We heard mass and I visited the graves of my parents. It felt like Christmas in March.
For 13 months, I was a fugitive from injustice. I have been subjected to the vitriol of arrogance and hatred by my old and new detractors. I have been humiliated, unfairly eviscerated of my dignity and personal honor, even as I am humbled by an experience so surreal I never imagined could happen.
Every single day that I was underground, the crucible stared each time I opened my eyes. For 13 months I lived the life of a prisoner outside a prison cell. The only difference from one who suffers in confinement is that I could on my own free will navigate my movements using the best of my instinctive compass. I had only one rule to follow. Do not get caught.
Since childhood, I have struggled in life. But the last struggle I had for the past year was the most challenging. The worst pain of all is that I didn’t know who my true and real friends were. I still thank God I found a few of them.
Lacson with the family SundayNot surprisingly, Sandra Cam, president of the Whistleblowers Association, is so happy that Sen. Ping Lacson is back.
Lacson arrived in Cebu from Hong Kong last Saturday. He proceeded to Manila. His media officer, Gerry de Belen, said the senator, who left the country 14 months ago to evade the warrant of arrest issued against him in connection with the murders of public relations practitioner Bubby Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito, will hold a presscon Monday (March 28) at the Senate at 11 a.m.
Cam said with the return of Lacson, members of their organization who will be called to the witness stand during the impeachment trial, feel more secure. She added that Lacson is the only one who is consistent with his help for the whistleblowers. (A whistleblower is one who exposes wrongdoing within an organization in the hope of stopping it) who testified in congressional investigation at great risk to their person and family.)
Even before the Court of Appeals came out with its final decision last March 18 saying that its earlier ruling nullifying the indictment of Regional Trial Court of Manila in connection with the Dacer-Corbito double-murder case automatically lifted the warrant of arrest issued against Lacson, the Whistleblowers Association had issued a statement giving him support warning the public that those who are protecting Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez are “hell-bent” in preventing Lacson from coming back.
Secretary Leila de Lima should stop using brute reason in interpreting the court of appeals ruling dismissing the case against me which she claimed she has not even read.
Let me remind her that in a civil and common law system like ours, the hierarchy of courts places the supreme court at the highest level and is therefore the sole authority to reverse the court of appeals in its ruling and decision. – not any of the lower courts of the land and certainly not the secretary of justice.
The appellate court has ruled that there is no probable cause to indict me for two counts of murder and categorically nullified the warrant of arrest that the Manila RTC branch 18 issued against me. De lima cannot place herself above any court of law. Otherwise, the justice system becomes defective and worse, will self-destruct.
The Court of Appeals on Thursday granted the petition of Sen. Panfilo Lacson to dismiss the double murder case lodged against him for the Dacer-Corbito killings a decade ago.
In an 80-page ruling, the appellate court’s Special Sixth Division reversed the two orders from the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 18 that found probable cause to indict Lacson for the killings of publicist Salvador Dacer and driver Emmanuel Corbito in November 2000.
The CA also revoked the arrest warrant the Manila court issued against Lacson, who has been in hiding since January last year.
Continuing Gloria Arroyo's crusade vs LacsonI applauded Justice Secretary Leila de Lima for the excellent job she did in the investigation of the Aug. 23 hostage-taking tragedy.
I admired her for standing her ground with the recommendations of the Incident Investigation Review Committee even as President Aquino did not adopt them to protect persons close to him.
But I am disturbed by De Lima’s eagerly executing the assignment Gloria Arroyo had given to the Department of Justice which was to make sure that Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson is put behind bars. It’s implementation was not carried out when Lacson went underground towards the end of her term.
What crime has Lacson committed against the Filipino people that he should be behind bars? None.
But Lacson has exposed various government anomalies involving Arroyo and her husband Mike . While in power, the Arroyos were able to stall investigation of the scams which were leading to them.
The case of Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, who is the subject of an arrest order is gross injustice inflicted by Gloria Arroyo not only on the senator but on the Filipino people.
It cannot be denied that the many expose of Lacson contributed to the unpopularity of Arroyo which eventually caused her being sidelined from power today. It is therefore sad that Justice Secretary Leila de Lima is allowing herself and her office to perpetrate the injustice instead of reversing it.
The Lacson family has brought the plight of the beleaguered senator to the Filipino people with an open letter detailing the blatant inconsistencies in the prosecution’s so called “evidence” . The letter is signed by Romulo Lacson, Feliciano Lacson, Reynaldo Lacson,Juanito Lacson, Ma. Corazon Lacson-Magpayo,Ernani Lacson, and Ma. Cristina Lacson-Diaz.
