Press Release
April 29, 2008

transcript of interview with Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano

Sen. ASC: On foreign loan, foreign government act and the procurement act, billion ang dole out ng program nila. Yung swine... on their loans. Why can't the government simply use the internet to publish what they're doing or sinong binigyan, magkano, etc. Because in each constituency, may it be the senate, may it be a baranggay, may it be the farmers' sector, parating may admin. opposition diyan e; not admin. as in GMA, anti-GMA, but parating may magkalaban diyan "di ba? So, kung naka-publish iyon, may check and balance ka rin. Makikita mo kung may anomalya o wala, 'di ba? So will spend, if by next week wala pang witnesses, ilalabas na namin iyon. We're making the report now and hopefully we'll finish it within the next two weeks and then we're looking at the South Rail and North Rail. But I'm checking now kung na-refer sa amin yung sa swine, we'll take it up, right away.

Q: Status ng ZTE?

Sen. ASC: As to the ZTE, there are some senators who are still, including the committee itself, working on some witnesses. But we will not wait for them. We are now preparing the report, which includes the abduction issue and includes the main issues of the ZTE. We do not want to wait too long to come up with their recommendations because importante kung ano yung naging problema sa ZTE, may recommendations at remedial legislation na kami na hindi ito mangyari sa ibang mga projects at ibang future loans ng gobyernong ito. Madaling magpatawag ng next hearing, for as long as merong bagong witness or bagong ebidensiya na masyadong relevant sa hearing na iyan. So we'll wait until the end of the week or early next week kung walang ibang witness, we're preparing to release the report. But we are, siguro, halfway in doing it. We are also already in the North Rail, but I want to see hanggang saan inabot ung dating hearing and I estimate one or two hearings and then we'll go to the South Rail. But if there are anomalies in agricultural products, ah agricultural projects, we want take it up as a sign or as a signal to Malacañang that we are watching how they will spend 40 billion pesos para sa agriculture and also to show them why simple proposals like that of Senator Escudero na i-publish yung list ng binigyan ng swine, yung swine beneficiaries para malaman kung meron o wala 'di ba, kalokohan doon. Actually we're working on a bill na dapat within three days after any government funds spent and given to beneficiaries, eto magiging dole out, yung Ahon Program nila, o maging bigas 'to sa mga schools or maging etong mga swine or fertilizer, ma-publish sa internet, sinong binigyan or kung asosasyon o kooperatiba ito, anong pangalan, anong binigay, magkano yung cost ng binigay. It's a simple thing but actually, may natural opposition at administration sa bawat organisasyon; may natural check and balance na matutulungan para hindi na natin kailangang imbestigahan ang bawat isa. So far, those are the things that are on the plate of the Blue Ribbon Committee.

Q: So sir, wala na po yung witness na nakikipag-usap sa inyo?

Sen.ASC: No, nandun pa rin. Right now, we're planning as if wala but we are still hoping na they will come forward. So, nandun pa rin at malaki pa rin ang pag-asa but we are not going to make the report dependent on them.

Q: So, dina-draft niyo na yung report sir?

Sen. ASC: Lahat ng evidence na sinubmit, lahat ng kulang sinusulatan na yung ibang agencies tapos lahat ng transcripts tinitingnan so ginagawa na yung timeline, etc. And then we have some letters for some of the former NEDA and former budget secretaries asking them for help also in remedial legislation kung paano ma-check nga yung interplay ng constitutional provisions on foreign borrowing, together with the foreign borrowing act, together with the procurement act at itong tinatawag nilang government-to-government via executive agreements. Pero sabi ko kanina, ang problema, nabubulaga tayo na ang dami na pala nating utang, but simple thing lang na halimbawa, i-publish mo lang sa internet o through a press release na the government is negotiating xyz loan, at least may heads up tayo. Hindi yung magugulat na lang tayo pagtingin natin sa budget, may ganoong loan, e ang problema usually ang bayaran ng loan may 5-year grace period, na nalaman mo 5 years later, implemented na yung loan may kalokohan na. So, ang tingin ng Blue Ribbon Committee, it's always prevention rather than cure 'di ba. So itong mga hearing is more of hinuhuli na kung sino yung...

Q: so sir does this mean that the blue ribbon, will there be recommendations to prosecute anybody up to saan sir?

Sen ASC: well depende sa conclusion namin...but ah...tulad dito sa abduction issue yung fingers are being pointed talaga at the administration at the PNP so we're... I don't want to preempt the other members but we will, together with the other blue ribbon lawyers and the two chairmen put together report, have the two chairmen read it give their inputs but what we are going to do is that we are going to send a CD hindi Garci tape ang laman kundi lahat ng transcript to all the senators and I'll also give the media a copy para lahat ng gustong gumawa ng sarili nilang report at isend sa amin at iintigrate pwede itong gawin we won't make it exclusive to myself and the blue ribbon staff na gumawa ng report.

Q: sir yung kickbacks...yung kickbacks how will...

Sen ASC: dun lang sa question kung aabot ba sa Malacanang at sa pangulo that is precisely why some senators are asking the witnesses that would provide the link directly to the office of the president that would testify that's why I'm open to it in fact I'm waiting for it ang sinasabi ko lang I can't wait forever so kung conclusions ang titingnan we can draw conclusions from the previous testimonies for example sinabi na ni Sec. Neri na may kickback inaprove pa rin but as to direct testimony...direct testimony, supposedly there are witnesses out there that can testify to such, but I will not ah... the doors of the blue ribbon committee is open to them but I can't wait forever for them doon sa kick back issues that would be the major part of the report because supposedly ang paniniwala nating mga kababayan pag foreign loans mas mahigpit but ang nakita natin dito sa ZTE pagkaforeign loans mas naging mas malaki pa ang kick back in fact it changed the paradigm that in one project you could have a kickback up to 130 million dollars.

Q: so sir sa mga narinig sa mga hearings wala pa pong mga direct na...kay pangulong Arroyo.

Sen ASC: not direct testimony but there is evidence leading up to the office of the president but it is always better may it be in the court of law may it be in an impeachment proceeding may it be in the blue ribbon committee that there is direct testimony and as I said ayaw ko lang pangunahan ang mga kasama ko dahil conclusion ko yun at conclusion namin na ganun but the best example that I can give right now is that Sec. Neri himself told the president na merong 200 million dito na binibigay sa kanya inaprove pa rin so hindi mo masasabi that the office of the president have nothing to do with this or didn't know about the corruption because the president herself said that before signing it alam na nya na merong corruption involved but whether alam nya o may kinalaman siya etc are two different things that I would prefer may direct testimony so I'm still hoping that within the next week that witnesses or those witnesses would come forward para people can judge for themselves yung nagsasabi ng totoo but I do know for a fact that those witnesses exist.

Q: sir kung hindi lalabas yung mga witnesses sa sarili nyong version ng report iilink nyo ba ang presidente...

Sen ASC: hindi ko muna ipipreempt sa ano...

Q: Sir yung lenders na the testimony indicated that the lenders knew that the manager... will go to this commission...

Sen ASC: ang testimony is not the lenders but the designated contractor so although ZTE is owned by the Chinese government it's still a separate juridical entity...

Q: so the ZTE knowing that they are advancing the money that will go to...

Sen ASC: were taking that into consideration kasi in a bribe there are two parties yung nangbribe at yung tumanggap...

Q: So ang ZTE can also be a...

Sen ASC:under Philippine laws when we talk about bribery hindi tinitingnan ang nationality dyan if titingnan mo ang nationality then ang gagawin na lang ng mga nagbabribe kukuha na lang ng mga foreigner para magbribe so if we do conclude that there was bribery here we will not look at nationality.

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