Lagman: No need for House probe on security breach

The House of Representatives should not "waste time" investigating the alleged security breach at the Batasang Pambansa compound in Quezon City to rig results of the 2004 polls, the leader of the minority bloc said Wednesday. At a press briefing, House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman said he has "reservations" regarding an ad hoc committee’s scheduled probe on the security breach. "Kung may ebidensya of a break in, that is already a police matter. Kung ‘yung police [will] not able to do that because they are involved, then let the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] or other investigatory bodies do it, not the legislature," said Lagman. He likewise said the House leadership should just beef up security at the Batasan compound and let courts handle evidence of the incident. "With or without a breach, we should have security measures in place," he said. Lagman is a member of a seven-member ad hoc panel formed by the lower chamber last week to investigate and produce a report of the incident. Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Tañada III, who heads the investigating committee, said the probe will begin on September 7. The panel has the power to issue subpoenas upon House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr.’s approval. Last month, Senior Superintendent Rafael Santiago came out with a detailed account of the switching of election paraphernalia to allegedly ensure the victory of then administration candidate and incumbent Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Mrs. Arroyo is a member of the House opposition bloc, which Lagman heads. Mayuga report, too At the same time, Lagman said "there is no need" for the House to investigate supposed leads on poll fraud contained in the Mayuga report. "As far as I’m concerned, if there are infractions in election laws by any party, then these should be brought to prosecutorial and judicial agencies and not anymore to the media or to the legislative bodies," he said. He added that an investigation on the Mayuga report may only lead to "trial by publicity." "What is important here is that if there is a crime, the criminal should be prosecuted and if warranted, convicted," he said. Bayan Muna party-list Reps. Neri Colmenares and Teodoro Casiño filed on Monday House Resolution 1654 urging the House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms to investigate leads on electoral fraud provided by the Mayuga report. President Benigno Aquino III ordered last week the release of the Mayuga report, which details the military’s investigation on claims that some of its ranking officers participated in the alleged rigging of the 2004 elections to favor Mrs. Arroyo. The report was prepared by former Navy Flag Officer-in-Command Vice Admiral Mateo Mayuga, who headed the panel that looked into the allegations of the military’s involvement in electoral fraud. At the end of the investigation in 2006, the panel headed by Mayuga cleared the officers whose names were mentioned in the "Hello, Garci" tape for lack of evidence. Until last week, however, the contents of the Mayuga report remained secret. — RSJ, GMA News