Not Doing Enough to Fight Corruption

I have just read news reports in inquirer.net and abs-cbnnews.com, both posted 23 February 2008, that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo admitted Saturday she was aware of allegations of high-level corruption in the National Broadband Network project, and that she addressed the "anomalies” in the NBN-ZTE deal by canceling it.

The reports quoted her as saying: "The people are angry about corruption. So am I. That is why as soon as there was talk about corruption in this I project, I took steps to cancel it."

I don't know if GMA is trying to act like a retard for canceling the contract but not prosecuting the criminals; or she thinks Filipinos are retards who will buy her story that she is doing something to fight corruption.

Canceling an anomalous contract is not enough to address the corruption that taints it. If bribe money already changed hands, then a crime has already been committed regardless of whether or not the contract is perfected. Worse, the criminals remain free, and free again to try their luck in securing another anomalous government contract.

If GMA is sincere in her avowed stance against corruption, then she should have ordered the investigation and prosecution of persons responsible for the anomalies in the NBN-ZTE contract. But seeing how government officials and her political allies are zealously trying to stop the on-going senate investigation on the ZTE deal, and the threat of the DOJ to file criminal cases against potential state witnesses Jun Lozada and former NEDA Sec. Neri, it is apparent that GMA is really bent on covering up the irregularities, and thus protect the criminals, in the NBN-ZTE deal.