MANILA, Philippines – Tatapusin ng infra-committee ng House of Representatives ang mga pagdinig nito sa mga maanomalyang proyekto sa imprastraktura bilang bahagi ng pangako ni dating Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, sinabi ni Deputy Speaker Janette Garin noong Huwebes.
Sinabi ni Garin na bago pa man bumaba sa puwesto si Romualdez, inatasan na niya ang tatlong panel na binubuo ng infra-committee na ihinto ang mga pagdinig nito, maliban sa mga talakayan sa mga posibleng hakbang upang maiwasang maulit ang mga katiwalian.
Ayon kay Garin, sinabi ni Romualdez na dapat tumabi ang infra-committee para sa Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), ang katawan na nilikha ng executive branch para imbestigahan ang mga kuwestiyonableng programa.
“Actually when the ICI was formed, it was Speaker Martin Romualdez, the former speaker, who called on the leaders and the political parties, and asked if ‘in your opinion, because there is an ICI already, do we still need the infra-comm?’ and he said it might be better to stop the probe so that the investigation would not be confusing,” saad ni Garin.
“But if there are documents, personalities, or information needed from the House that we can produce, we will be all-in to help the ICI,” dagdag niya.
Ayon kay Garin, inilabas na ni Romualdez ang direktiba bago pa man maupo sa pwesto ang bagong halal na Speaker na si Faustino “Bojie” Dy III.
Batay sa kanyang pag-unawa, sinabi ni Garin na igagalang ni Dy ang naunang direktiba na inilabas ni Romualdez.
“Even before Speaker Bojie Dy took office, when the ICI was formed, there was a consultation, and later on, Speaker Martin Romualdez issued a directive to stop the hearings, unless you’re going to deal with legislative measures to instigate safeguards so that it will not happen again,” aniya.
“My understanding is that he (Dy) will respect first meetings and consultations done. The two of them talked, and he was apprised of the ongoing and the priorities in the House. However, as of now, the top priority is the budget, which must align with the people’s expectations. What we understood is that there will be no hearings anymore, or if such will be conducted, this is to formally endorse all the documents and the affidavits gathered by the ICI.” RNT/MND
