Transcript of Senator Mar Roxas' interpellation during the hearing into the World Bank ban against three Philippine contractors

(To Ed De Luna)

MAR: Pumunta ang mga taga-World Bank sa iyo?

De Luna: Opo

MAR: Ilan silang nagpunta doon? Isa o dalawang tao? Opisyal? Ano ba ito? Dayuhan? O Pilipino? May abogado?

De Luna: Dalawang dayuhan

MAR: Dalawang dayuhan ang nagpunta sa office mo at doon sa interview na ito, meron kang representative na umupo? O ikaw lang?

De Luna: Ako lang po.

MAR: So, silang dalawa at ikaw. Para malinaw. Lahat ng sinasabi mo dito maaari naming tanungin dun sa dalawa...

(To DPWH Sec. Hermogenes Ebdane)

MAR: The point is...They did that for them in their effort to protect their money. They undertook this investigative process. The World Bank and their executives are responsible to the governments of the world who all contribute to the ownership of the World Bank, including the Philippine government. We have a contributory share in the ownership of the World Bank, all of the governments of the world are pretty much co-owners of the World Bank.

So the World Bank, in arriving at these findings, simply is saying: In our investigation, these companies appear more likely than not to have engaged in collusion. So we no longer will want to deal with them. It's as simple as that.

Now, the relevant for us, the Philippine government, is if a respected entity says in their own investigation they have found collusive practice by these contractors, the relevant question for us as a government is: What did we do to follow-up on this? Okay lang ba sa atin na other agencies have found out about this collusive practice? Or are we ourselves interested to find out what happened? Was there anything in our laws or regulations that may have contributed to it? Or were there people that may have in fact aided and abetted it.

The relevant question is, Mr. Secretary of public works, when did you know about this? And what did you about it?

Ebdane: I have a statement here which I should have delivered, if I maybe allowed to touch some portions...

(Santiago: When did you know of investigation of WB?) ...

MAR: The question is... As far back as November 2007, about a year and a half ago, you were informed that these were the findings of a major funder of our government, in fact a major funder of the road construction and maintenance program of our government. Were you not concerned how they could have found this? Did you ask for data? For an internal investigation? Did you ask them...who were your witneses? What is your evidence? And so on and so forth? Was there such coordination?

Ebdane: When informed of investigation, we requested for copy of report...

MAR: The way it works here, the World Bank lends it to the Republic of the Philippines through the Department of Finance. The DoF, in the budget process, DBM, the money gets to the DPWH for the DPWH to then operationalize or to actually undertake the construction or the maintenance.

Therefore, any such bidding is under the auspices of the DPWH.

Ebdane: In all instances, the WB is there with us...

MAR: But the bidding is under the auspices of the DPWH. So, when the World Bank says we have found evidence, we conducted our own investigation and we have found that collusion has happened, what they are in fact is saying is the bidding under the auspices of the DPWH, is defective. Because that bidding does not produce the best price and the best quality for the Filipino people because this bidding allows a collusive product or a collusive outcome to come about. So in fact, when the World Bank says 'We are barring EC De Luna and Cavite Ideal etc... What is central to this is...the bidding undertaken by the DPWH or the rules and regulations of the DPWH in fact allows this collusion to happen.

Now, if I was secretary of DPWH, I will feel insulted. I will feel 'How can you say that?' How can you say that we are allowing this? I would have conducted an investigation. I would have asked 'How can the World Bank say that there is collusion under my watch? Eh matino naman akong tao, malinis naman ang aking record? Pakita natin na we will not allow such collusion.

So my question...in defending your personal honor, in defending the honor of your agency, what did you do?

Ebdane: Don't want to jump the gun on the W0rld Bank...as early as November 5, 006, I requested our President to drop the 2 projects from WB fgunding for those particular issues and in turn informed the WB a few days after that we are dropping the funding of the 2 projects from WB...after that...if you look, the projects were not consummated.

(Santiago: Hindi lang pera ng WB ang ginastos, pera ng Pilipinas, pareho pa din na may collusion...)