Palace: No sacred cow in probe on carjack gangs' cohorts in govt

There will be no sacred cows in the ongoing investigation on supposed government connections of carjacking syndicates, Malacañang assured Tuesday. "I think it goes without saying na sa lahat naman ng nagiging efforts natin is, one, there has to be transparency, second, kailangan na managot ang may kasalanan and, third, nasa tuwid na daan po tayo so it (illegal activities) will not be tolerated," said deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte. "There is no sacred cow when it comes to this," she added at a press briefing in Malacañang. Valte also said the public and those being accused of colluding with syndicates should just wait for the results of the probe being conducted by the authorities. "Kung ano man po yan ay makikita po natin sa magiging resulta ng investigation. Of course, that is a reaction that is normal to say na wala po yan sa hanay natin ngunit hindi naman po natin nakikita kung ano ang nasa loob ng hanay nila," she said. Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo earlier said they are now looking into the cohorts of carjacking syndicates in government offices particularly in agencies involved in registration of vehicles. He noted that carjacking operations will not flourish without help from those involved in registering vehicles. "Mahirap na lumago ang sindikato na walang ibang kasama. Hindi naman lalaki at lalaganap ang carnapping kung walang mga kasama nagrerehistro ng mga sasakyan." (Carnapping operations will not flourish without outside help, especially from those involved in the registration of vehicles.) Robredo said they will also look into the prosecutors and courts that handled the carnapping cases of Raymond Dominguez, suspect in the killing of car dealer Venson Evangelista, for a holistic approach on the problem. On Tuesday, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said the DILG and the DOJ will be creating a joint panel to investigate whether law enforcers are in cahoots with carjacking syndicates. De Lima said even government prosecutors will be subject to investigation. — Amita Legaspi/RSJ, GMANews.TV