No need for independent probe vs Arroyo — Enrile

An independent commission that would look into allegations against President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo — particularly corruption and election fraud — once she bows out of office will be unnecessary, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said on Sunday. In an interview on radio dzBB, Enrile, who was reelected in the May 10 automated elections, said Philippine courts and government prosecutors have enough teeth to investigate the alleged wrongdoings of President Arroyo while in Malacañang. “Independent commission for what? The people will only spend for that. The Department of Justice is there. The National Bureau of Investigation is there. Why would you need an independent commission? I am wary of independent commissions like that," Enrile said in Filipino. An investigation on President Arroyo by an independent commission was one of the campaign promises of President-elect Benigno “Noynoy" Aquino III, and was supported by Sen. Edgardo Angara, a perceived Arroyo ally. Controversies that hounded the nine-year Arroyo administration include the “Hello, Garci" scandal in 2005 where she is accused of manipulating the results of the previous year’s electons, the P728-million fertilizer fund scam where money for poor farmers was allegedly diverted to her campaign kitty in the 2004 polls, and the $329-million broadband deal that the government scuttled after whistleblowers alleged the First Couple and other administration allies received millions in kickbacks. “Nothing happened" Enrile said independent panels in the past years have only had moderate success. “Kung anu-ano’ng komisyon, wala akong narinig na nangyari (We’ve had commissions of all sorts, nothing has happened)," he said without identifying any independent commission. Throughout her rule, President Arroyo has formed investigating bodies such as 2006’s Melo Commission, which looked into extrajudicial killings during her administration. It was led by former Supreme Court Associate Justice and now Commission on Elections chairman Jose Melo. Among other findings, the Melo Commission recommended the investigation of retired Army general and Bantay party-list Rep. Jovito Palparan, who gained notoriety for his supposed human rights abuses while in active military service. Palparan ran for senator but lost in the recent elections. Another high-profile independent body was the three-member commission that investigated the celebrated “Alabang Boys" case in 2009, where three scions of affluent families were accused of peddling and using illegal narcotics. Their families allegedly bribed Department of Justice officials so the suspects may get off the hook. However, the commission recommended the filing of drug charges agent Joseph Tecson, Richard Brodett, and Jorge Joseph. The three are detained at separate city jails while their drug cases are pending. Most recently, President Arroyo formed the Zeñarosa Commission, headed by Court of Appeals Associate Justice Monina Arevalo-Zeñarosa, to disband private armies. Its creation stemmed from the November 23 massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao province where the powerful Ampatuan clan and their armed supporters are implicated. - KBK, GMANews.TV