San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora
MANILA, Philippines – Although the House of Representative cannot compel senators to appear in its turf once its inquiry into the alleged P10-billion pork barrel scam kicks off, minority leader Ronaldo Zamora issued this advice:
If senators know what is good for them, they should not keep mum on the issue.
In a press conference, Zamora warned that once the House obtained evidence from the NBI and “if their names are mentioned, it would be better [for them] to bring evidence in support of their denials.”
“If anyone wants to appear before us–if they want to be invited then we will invite them. They are big enough, old enough to know what’s good for them. It is much better to answer allegations than keep quiet. They should take these charges seriously and answer [the allegations],” he said.
“We want to stop this business of people gossiping. [Never mind those who are] guilty but I don’t think everybody should be tarnished,” he added.
The problem with a House hearing was that there were parliamentary traditions that Zamora said they “don’t want to violate.”
“But if it were a senator, especially if large amounts were involved, better for his career and reputation to attend the investigation,” he said
The minority bloc is set to file a resolution on Monday that would urge the House of Representatives to look into the alleged misuse of lawmakers’ priority development assistance fund (PDAF).
“All of us in the minority will sign it. We hope the other members from the majority and the independent blocs will also join us,” he said.
This was the opposition’s efforts to go through “extraordinary lengths to find out the truth,” added Zamora.
He said that they intended to “go back as far as we need to” during the investigation and find out what was wrong with the pork barrel system.