Litmus test DRILON PLUNDER CASE CRITICAL IN PNOY ANTI-CORRUPTION DRIVE

By Manny Pinol

There is no question that the anti-corruption drive of President Benigno S. Aquino III has really scored big with the impeachment of a Supreme Court Chief Justice, the imprisonment of three sitting senators and the filing of plunder cases against many more legislators.

In spite of the successful anti-corruption campaign, however, there are charges from some sectors that the Aquino administration has only trained its guns on those it perceived to be political enemies.

There is enough ground to breed the suspicion that the Aquino anti-corruption drive is being implemented with jaundiced eyes which squint and look away from anything colored yellow.

TESDA’s Joel Villanueva, Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala and Police Chief Allan Purisima have been implicated to serious corruption issues but the reaction of the Aquino Administration has at best been lukewarm to calls for their resignation, much more prosecution.

In fact, in an evident display of support for Villanueva, President Aquino recently sat beside the TESDA chief during a recent religious activity while he publicly defended both Purisima and Alcala.

President Aquino’s actions on the cases of Villanueva, Purisima and Alcala were so unlike the ferocity shown by its allies in Congress and the Senate in bringing down Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez and in the impeachment of Chief Justice Renato Corona for incorrect declarations in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth.

Absent was the relentless gathering of evidence as shown in the prosecution and subsequent jailing of Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Revilla, Jr.

The Drilon plunder case is a litmus test for PNOY’s anti-corruption drive not only because it eerily has similarities with the on-going Senate investigation against Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Drilon is accused of plunder for the alleged overpricing of the Iloilo Convention Center (ICC) which was funded with about P700 million from the controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) and his pork barrel.

Binay is also charged with plunder and unexplained wealth mainly because of the alleged overpricing of the Makati City Hall Bldg. II which was built for over P2-B.

The funny coincidence?

The construction of the controversial buildings, the ICC and the Makati City Hall Bldg. II was undertaken by Hillmarc Construction Corp.

The second strange coincidence?

The men behind the exposes in the overpricing of both buildings used to be trusted men of the two big name politicians.

For Binay, it was his alleged bagman and Vice Mayor in Makati for many years, Ernesto Mercado, and for Drilon it was his former consultant, Manuel Mejorada, who used to be Iloilo provincial administrator.

And the third hilarious coincidence?

Both Binay and Drilon claim that the charges by their former trusted men were out of spite after the accusers were not granted their requests – Mercado for not having been given the chance to become Mayor of Makati and for Mejorada for Drilon’s inaction on his request to be appointed cabinet undersecretary.

Binay is now subject of an intensive Senate Blue Ribbon sub-committee investigation.

Some legislators are also saying that if this was done in the case of Binay, an investigation should also be conducted into the Drilon case.

Failure by the administration allies to conduct a Senate probe into the Drilon plunder case will be the final and irrefutable proof that the campaign against corruption in government is just a masked political persecution.