Press Release
February 6, 2009

ROXAS PROPOSES APPOINTMENT OF SPECIAL PROSECUTOR
INDEPENDENT PROBER SOUGHT TO LOOK INTO CHARGES VS FG

Liberal President Senator Mar Roxas today said a Special Prosecutor should be appointed by the government to investigate allegations of First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo's involvement in rigging bids for a multi-million dollar road project financed by the World Bank.

Roxas said this would deliver a strong message to the international political community of the Philippine government's sincerity to stop corruption by its public leaders.

"Mahalagang ipakita natin na seryoso tayo na supilin ang korapsyon sa gobyerno (It is important that we show we are serious in solving corruption in government)," he said.

He said the Special Prosecutor could be appointed by Congress or the President herself. This investigator should be armed with subpoena powers and a budget that would allow him to hire an army of lawyers to conduct an in-depth probe into the allegations against the President's husband.

In the United States, a Special Prosecutor is an attorney from outside the government selected by the government's main legal advisor or by Congress to investigate and possibly prosecute a government official for misconduct while in office. The theory behind appointing a special prosecutor is that there is a built-in conflict of interest between the Department of Justice and officials who may have political or governmental connections with that department.

Roxas said that among others, the Special Prosecutor can prioritize the investigation of Mr. Arroyo's alleged involvement in the collusive bidding for government infrastructure projects, which has resulted to the banning of three Philippine and four Chinese contractors from projects funded by the World Bank.

"Kailangang kumilos tayo ngayon na para mahinto ang katiwalian sa gobyerno. Hindi naman kasi ginagawa ni Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez ang trabaho niya, kaya mahalaga na maghanap ng isang special prosecutor na siyang gagawa ng imbestigasyon (We have to act now to address rampant corruption in government. Since Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez has been remiss in her job, it is important that we find a special prosecutor that would handle this investigation)," Roxas said.

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