Press Release
February 2, 2008

ROXAS TO NERI: WE RESPECT YOU, RESPECT THE SENATE

Senator Mar Roxas today urged Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairman Romulo Neri to stop evading Senate hearings on the ZTE-National Broadband Network (NBN) deal and join the quest for truth in the public interest.

"I know Romy Neri is a decent person and deserves our respect and that of the Senate, but his constant refusal to cooperate shows he might be hiding something that the people should know and is thereby betraying their trust" Roxas said.

"Noon, nang mag-testimonya si Chairman Neri laban kay Chairman Benjamin Abalos, tingin nami'y mayroon siyang integridad at siya'y malinis na opisyal. Pero ngayong iniiwasan niya ang Senado, ang nakukuha namin ay mayroon ngayon siyang itinatago, o kaya'y wala siyang gulugod," he added.

Roxas said that the joint Committees on Blue Ribon and on Trade and Commerce could not complete its probe into the ZTE-NBN deal because of dilatory and evasive actions of the government and its functionaries.

"Lahat ng impormasyon na patungkol sa mga gawain ng gobyerno na may epekto sa interes ng publiko ay dapat ilantad, at ang Saligang Batas natin mismo ang nagsasabi nito," he said.

"Pero hinayaan pa ng pamahalaan na humantong ito sa punto na naghablahan pa kami. Sa huli, ang naiinsulto rito ay ang publiko: tila ba walang tiwala ang pamahalaan sa kakayahan ng taumbayan na husgahan kung tama nga ba ang ginagawa ng gobyerno nila," he added.

He bewailed the government's inappropriate invocation of executive privilege over the testimony of Chairman Neri and the documents and proceedings of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) - Investment Coordinating Committee (ICC) on how the ZTE deal was approved.

Roxas--in his capacity as Chairman of the Trade Committee--and fellow Liberal Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino had to seek the Supreme Court's intervention to reveal these NEDA-ICC documents.

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