Ombudsman official: No standard on ‘lavish lifestyle’

In the thick of the controversy on President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s supposed lavish dinners in her recent United States trip, an official from the Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday said there are no standards on what constitutes a lavish lifestyle for a public official. "Sa batas, di sinabi ang amount o value, so contextual po yun in terms of society…Walang standard po, pero titignan natin ‘yong sweldo po kung kaya," said Assistant Ombudsman Mark Jalandoni in an interview on GMA News’ Unang Hirit. (There is no mention in the law of the amount or value, so it's contextual in terms of society ... There is no standard, but we will look into whether a public official’s salary can afford such lifestyle.) Section I, Article XI of the 1987 Constitution provides that "public officers must, at all times be accountable to the people, serve them with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty, and efficiency; act with patriotism and lead modest lives." Section 4 of Republic Act 6713, or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, also provides that "public officials and employees and their families shall lead modest lives appropriate to their positions and income. They shall not indulge in extravagant or ostentatious display of wealth in any form." Jalandoni made the statement a day after Akbayan party-list Rep. Walden Bello asked Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez to look into the controversial dinner Mrs. Arroyo and her entourage had in an upscale New York restaurant last week. [See: Ombudsman urged to probe controversial NY dinner] Still, Jalandoni said that they would look into the matter. "Titignan po natin, i-eevaluate po natin. Mag-assign po ako ng director (We will look into this and evaluate this. I will assign a director to do this)," he said. In its Page Six section last August 7, US tabloid New York Post reported that the dinner tab at Le Cirque restaurant reached $20,000. It was unclear when the dinner took place. The reports on the New York dinner, which Malacañang had repeatedly said was not lavish, sparked a firestorm from political critics of President Arroyo. 0n Wednesday, it was further revealed that Mrs. Arroyo and her entourage also dined at the Bobby Van’s Steakhouse in Washington after Mrs. Arroyo met with US President Barack Obama. [See: Before NY, Arroyo entourage dined in Washington for $15 k] A Washington Post blog pegged the dinner’s cost at $15,000 and noted that "an unidentified woman opened a handbag stuffed with cash, counted the bills, and paid the $15,000 tab, which included a generous tip." Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez, who was with Mrs. Arroyo in Washington, confirmed that they dined with the President at Bobby Van's Steakhouse. However, he did not confirm the reported $15,000 bill and was coy on who paid for it. Critics say spending such amount for just one meal is extravagant and unjustifiable considering the meager salaries of Philippine government officials. According to the 2009 National Budget Circular of the Department of Budget and Management, the President should be receiving a monthly salary of P82,400. The vice president, on the other hand, should be receiving a pay of P67,677 a month while senators and congressmen should get P59,186 monthly. These salary figures became effective on July 1, 2009 after the enactment of the Salary Standardization Law III. Under the law, the salaries are to increase by seven more steps within four years. Not modest Bello, in his two-page letter of complaint to the Ombudsman, said the public officers linked to the issue might be held liable for violating several laws, including RA 6713. Bello also said even if the dinner was not paid for with public funds as claimed by Press Secretary Cerge Remonde, who said Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez footed the bill — the incident can still fall under Presidential Decree 46 and Article 211 of the Revised Penal Code for indirect bribery. Both laws penalize public officers who receive gifts that are given by reason of their official position, as well as the persons who give such gifts. Bello said the expenditure in New York "in no way…can be characterized as modest." Malacañang, for its part, insisted that there was nothing wrong with the dinner. "We are confident there is nothing wrong that has been done and the position taken has been expressed and therefore it’s for anybody to pursue what they want to pursue and let the subject matter be laid to rest," said Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita. - GMANews.TV