Warning GMA, Villar, Bolante, et al.
FRANKLY SPEAKING
by Frank Wenceslao
I’m sure current and former Filipino and ex-Filipino public officials, their close associates and immediate family members, private individuals and businessmen that colluded with them came across a news dispatch from Zurich that Switzerland’s authorities froze $4.6 million in Swiss bank accounts belonging to the family of former Haiti’s dictator, Jean-Claude Duvalier, as illegally earned.
I just learned that upon the request of Haiti’s authorities the US has spread a worldwide net to recover Duvalier’s illicit assets estimated over $100 million mostly in France, former Haiti’s colonizer and poses a legal question regarding Duvalier’s French nationality.
The decision clears the way to return the funds to Haiti and help this nation cope with the disaster that befell it. It surely reverberates around the world to cause anxiety among those with ill-gotten gains from the proceeds of corruption especially Filipinos and ex-Filipinos whether their loot is in the Philippines or overseas.
It’s very clear unexplained ill-gotten gains are not protected anymore by bank secrecy law especially those hidden in US banks and investments. Neither can they be covered up as Manuel Villar has allegedly agreed with Gloria Macapagal Arroyo for her support to him and win in the May 2010 elections. The best option for those with illicit assets from proceeds of corruption is to negotiate settlement under US laws by turning over a good part to the U.S. Interagency Anticorruption Team (USIAT) composed of the Departments of State, the Treasury, Justice, and Homeland Security and keep a portion agreed upon.
Jocelyn Bolante experienced staying in an 8X10 ft. cell during over 2-year incarceration by US immigration for coming to the US with invalid visa on top of skipping a Senate’s subpoena to shed light on the loss of PhP728 million ($15.80M) fertilizer fund for which he’s charged of plunder. He should tell GMA, the First Gentleman, Villar and others what occurred in his mind at night when all that could be seen was forested area around the ICE immigration detention center in rural Wisconsin.
I wrote in a previous column that Pamusa would probably play an important role in President Obama’s National Export Initiative (NEI) to expand U.S. exports with the USIAT undertaking “measures which will support the tracing, freezing, seizure, and confiscation of illicit assets from the proceeds of corruption” mandated by the UNCAC’s international cooperation provisions (UNCAC-ICP) of current and former public officials, their close associates and immediate family members, politically influential private individuals and businessmen that colluded with them wherever the ill-gotten gains are hidden.
Pamusa supporters around the world, my colleagues and I celebrate this development. The NEI policy paper I propose to the White House makes it unmistakably clear Pamusa’s biggest concern is to ensure clean, honest, orderly and peaceful May elections which are our last best hope for a free choice by our people of leaders in the post-Arroyo regime. I’ve conveyed the concern of overseas Filipinos to the Supreme Court to reverse the Comelec’s ruling allowing GMA to run for Congress, which if decided free of “utang-na-loob” and political considerations will favorably impact our nation over the long term.
Overseas Filipinos’ overwhelmingly decry through emails to Pamusa and me that it’s neither in the country’s nor Arroyo’s interest to run for Congress. Hence, the Court is well advised to reverse the Comelec’s ruling and disallow Arroyo’s candidacy.
Although I’m not a lawyer I came across judicial decisions considered more in the law’s spirit, national interest and statesmanship instead of the narrow letter of the law. When thought through Arroyo’s run for Congress will ultimately be detrimental to the nation.
No reasonable person can see any benefit to the people from GMA in Congress if her nine-year presidency is the basis of what she can possibly accomplish. That’s why on behalf of our fellow Filipinos at home and overseas Pamusa pleads with the Court to disallow Arroyo’s candidacy. It’ll be a turning point for the Court to return to the days of Jose P. Laurel, Claro M. Recto, Jose Abad Santos and others who put national interest over personal ambitions that make us nostalgic for those days when love of country, judicial wisdom and statesmanship make Filipinos proud wherever we may be.
Finally, allow me to outline the salient passages of my proposed NEI policy paper for President Obama’s approval not as a threat but simply a pleading to give our people a break to recover from years of graft and corruption, deteriorating national leadership, and their debilitating effects of poverty, malnutrition, poor education, high criminality, and other serious social problems, to wit:
The U.S.-Philippines Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty may be amended to enable the USIAT to boost U.S. exports by undertaking “measures which will support the tracing, freezing, seizure, and confiscation of illicit assets from the proceeds of corruption” of current and former Philippine public officials, their close associates and immediate family members, politically influential private individuals and businessmen that colluded with them mandated by UNCAC-ICP enforced by US laws.
The ill-gotten gains will be repatriated to the Philippines in U.S. exports of equivalent value such as wheat, feed corn, processed foods, farm equipment, used trucks and construction equipment, and other U.S. products the Philippines may demand from time to time.
Pamusa offers its services and network of informants to gather evidence on cases that can be replicated in other countries. Actually, the NEI will help poor nations like the Philippines recover foreign aid funds and the country’s resources stolen by Ferdinand Marcos and family, his cronies and the corrupt public officials and co-conspirators of succeeding administrations up to Gloria Arroyo’s presidency that otherwise would be lost for good.
The NEI will be a “sword of Damocles” over those undermining democratic processes, the rule of law and international financial system. Pamusa’s supporters want to send a warning that whoever frustrates the free choice by Filipinos of their leaders in the May elections, e.g. SC justices and Comelec commissioners that will allow Arroyo to for Congress with will be at the top of the list for FBI investigation and USIAT legal action to recover their ill-gotten gains such as foreign bank accounts and investments in the US or other UNCAC signatories like Switzerland for repatriation to the Philippines in equivalent value of U.S. exports.
Overseas Filipinos are pestering Pamusa to inform them our plan against the Court justices and election commissioners of twisting constitutional provisions and allowing appointed officials to run for office without resigning their positions including nuisance candidates for president such as ex-president Joseph Estrada convicted for plunder reportedly at Arroyo’s behest to muddle election results to cause the failure of electing the three top national officials, namely: president, vice president and senate president.
Arroyo’s has three options stay in power according to an intelligence report of a Washington DC think tank. First, support Villar to win so he’d protect her and family more so should she become House speaker; second, as speaker and fourth in line of presidential succession she’d assume the presidency in case of failure to elect and proclaim any winner of said government positions and, finally, to cause national emergency and convince AFP and PNP top officers to allow her to continue as acting president.
There’s an unconfirmed report Secretary Hillary Clinton has told Arroyo President Obama won’t accept another “black-eye” in his foreign policy if what happened in Honduras were to also happen in the Philippines.
