Truth Commission EO 'problematic,' Miriam says

President Benigno Aquino III's executive order that created the Truth Commission has pitfalls that could hamper the body's success in probing alleged corruption in government in the last nine years, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago on Sunday said. Santiago said Congress must first pass a law creating the commission or allowing the Office of the President to form the body. "Maraming problema. That's a very problematic draft.... Kapag walang original law passed by Congress, the President cannot issue an executive order," Santiago said in an interview on dzBB. So far, the senator is the latest to criticize Mr. Aquino's Executive Order No. 1, establishing the Truth Commission, a five-man panel to be headed by retired Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. The panel is tasked to "bring a necessary closure to the allegations of official wrongdoing and impunity" during the Arroyo administration. [See: Aquino signs EO creating Truth Commission] The body has the power to issue subpoenas to possible witnesses. However, Santiago said "unless there is a law, [Mr. Aquino] will ask congress to have the [the commission] issue a subpoena." Also, She said only Congress can appropriate funding for the truth body, contrary to Malacañang's claims that the Office of the President can provide the funds. Last Saturday, House Minority Leader and Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said the EO may have violated certain provisions under the 1987 Constitution. He added that his bloc is "seriously considering" challenging the legality of the order before the courts. He argued that only Congress can create new offices and commissions based on the Charter. He also said that Mr. Aquino's mother, the late President Corazon Aquino, formed the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) through “legislative authorization." Lagman and former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo belong to the Lakas-Kampi-CMD party. The Aquino administration had defended the creation of the body. Last week, Justice Sec. Leila de Lima told critics that the commission will not end up a toothless tiger. She likewise said President Aquino has the prerogative to issue an executive order, and that going through the legislative process might be tedious. "A law would take time... that's why the option picked is through a presidential issuance," she said. "We have to consider practicality, because it would take time if it [creation of the commission] would be through the legislative process," said De Lima. — LBG, GMANews.TV