Sen. Kiko Pangilinan Speaks on PDAF Scam amid Senate Flood Control Hearing
KIKO PANGILINAN – The Senator claimed that the flood control issue allegedly might have not happened if the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam ended with conviction.
Several senators and congressmen are allegedly linked to the flood control mess in the Philippines. Amid the issue, both the Senate and the House of Representatives had a change in their leaderships. The upper chamber is now led by Senate President Tito Sotto after former Senate Pres. Chiz Escudero admitted receiving a P30-million campaign donation from a flood control contractor.
While most of the other committee chairmanships remained, the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee also had a change in leadership — from Sen. Rodante Marcoleta to Sen. Ping Lacson who recently had a feud during the latest Senate flood probe. The former was questioning the latter’s answer to an interview over a witness protection plea.
Aside from Lacson and Marcoleta, the other senators who were also at the Senate flood probe include senators Kiko Pangilinan, Bam Aquino, Risa Hontiveros, Bato dela Rosa, Robin Padilla, JV Ejercito, and Senate Pres. Tito Sotto. The senators also aired their side over the anomalous flood control projects in the country.
Countless Filipinos were dismayed over the supposed multi-billion flood control scam in the Philippines. Amid the issue, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan recalled the PDAF scam which is another huge corruption issue in the country.
Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan claimed that if the “Napoles Case” or also called the PDAF scam ended with conviction, the huge corruption issue in the flood control projects in the country now may have allegedly not happened. He stressed that the case, however, ended in the liberty of the accused.
“Siguro kung ‘yung Napoles case e nauwi sa halip na abswelto e kulong, baka ‘di na nangyari ang malaking kurakot. Plunder kaso non e, nakakulong na nga e naabswelto. So ang dulo nitong lahat e sa hudikatura,” Sen. Kiko Pangilinan said.
In the said PDAF scam, among those who were accused and acquitted were Janet Lim-Napoles, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, and former senators Bong Revilla and Juan Ponce Enrile. While Sen. Kiko Pangilinan did not directly name anyone in his remarks as to the report, both Estrada and Revilla are facing accusations over the flood control mess in the country.
It was only during the latest Senate flood hearing when Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bulacan District Engineer Henry Alcantara linked former Sen. Bong Revilla to the flood control scam.