Day: March 9, 2012

The March 7, 2012 issue of Sydney Morning Herald carried a news item, “Defence firm faces bribe probe “by Nick McKenzie and Richard Baker.

The firm involved is Tenix Defence, Australia’s biggest military contractor, which is under investigation by federal police investigation for allegedly bribing officials and politicians across Asia including the Philippines to win massive contracts.

The article said “A director of Tenix’s Philippines subsidiary, lawyer Romela Bengzon, this week confirmed a police investigation into company contracts. She declined to comment further, citing her ongoing role with Tenix.”

The article further said, “Ms Bengzon is well known to the Australian embassy in Manila and is corporate secretary of the Australian New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines. In 2005, she was made a commissioner to advise on changes to the Philippine constitution. She is now the Philippines ambassador for international trade.”

The last sentence was a shock to me because Bengzon was an ardent supporter of Gloria Arroyo. How did she get the position of “ambassador for international trade” under the Aquino administration?

Bengzon was deputy secretary-general of the 2006 Consultative Commission that Arroyo formed to amend the Constitution. The Commission recommended a shift to a parliamentary system of government. It also recommended the scrapping of the 2007 election and extension to 2010 the term of office of elective officials, local and national.

The Commission attempted to tamper with the provision in the Bill of Right guaranteeing freedom of the press by inserting the word “responsible.” Who determines what is “responsible” press?

Bengzon who loved to describe herself as “New York lawyer” was known to be very, very close with a ranking official of the Arroyo administration. We were told that during the Arroyo administration, she brokered several deals one of them was the supply by a French company of a paper used in the printing of Philippine money.

I immediately called up the Department of Foreign Affairs. Nobody knew about “Ambassador Romela Bengzon.”

I googled. Her profile in the Bengzon Law website states,” Mela Bengzon has been appointed to key positions by the Philippine government, i.e. she was chairperson of the Economic Liberalization Committee of the Charter Change Advocacy Commission and Deputy Secretary General of the Consultative Commission. Her most recent post in the Philippine Government is as the Honorary Investment and Trade Representative (Trade Ambassador) to the European Union.”

I called up her office and inquired about her being “Trade Ambassador.” The lady who entertained my query said, “That was before.” I asked when and she couldn’t tell me because she said Bengzon’s secretary had already gone home.

I texted some Malacañang officials. Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang said, “Not true.”

Carandang said he checked with the office of Executive Secretary Jojo Ochoa and there was really no appointment of Bengzon as “ambassador for international trade.”

Anyway, here’s the portion of the Sydney Morning Herald’s report involving the Philippines:
“One of the suspect Tenix deals involved a 2001-02 contract to supply six search-and-rescue vessels for the Philippine Coast Guard. It is suspected to have involved bribes to senior officials and politicians, including a cabinet minister.

“The deal was underpinned by a $109 million guarantee from the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) – an arm of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – to enable the Philippines to borrow from banks, including ANZ, and pay Tenix for the boats.

“In 2002, when EFIC provided the guarantee and Tenix began building the boats for the Philippines, the company hired Mr Reith as a consultant. The company also had representatives on the boards of government trade agency Austrade and EFIC between 2001 and 2008. The Age is not suggesting Mr Reith was involved in the Philippines deal.

“BAE Systems – which in 2010 paid huge fines after US and UK investigations into allegations the firm had bribed foreign officials – is believed to have called in the federal police to investigate Tenix after finding evidence of suspected bribes. BAE declined to comment to The Age.

“In response to questions from The Age, an AFP spokesman said the agency ”received a referral in 2009 for alleged improper payments made by multinational staff members to secure contracts in the Asia region”.

‘’’As this matter is subject to an ongoing investigation, it is inappropriate to comment further,” the spokesman said.

“The Foreign Affairs Department last night said it became aware of the AFP’s probe into Tenix in January 2010. An EFIC spokeswoman confirmed the agency became aware of the police probe into Tenix last year and had ”co-operated with the AFP as requested”.

“Businessman Ian Knop, a former EFIC board member and Tenix lobbyist, declared a potential conflict of interest ”involving his client Tenix Defence and the government of the Philippines” in the corporation’s 2003 annual report.

“Mr Knop yesterday said his lobbying work for Tenix only related to domestic matters and that he would have excused himself from any EFIC board deliberations involving the company. Mr Knop, who left the EFIC board in 2008, said he was unaware of the police investigation into Tenix.

“Doubts over the legitimacy of Tenix’s Philippines deal, worth tens of millions to the company, first emerged in Manila in 2005 when Philippines Senate president Franklin Drilon declared it illegal and claimed no provision for the vessels had ever been made in the national budget.

“As a result, the Philippines stopped repaying its loan, leaving Australian taxpayers – through EFIC – liable for almost $100 million in unrepaid loans, according to information tabled in Australia’s Parliament in February 2007. EFIC declined to say whether it was still financially exposed over the deal.

“The six-boat contract followed Tenix’s delivery of two search-and-rescue vessels in 2000. The initial contract was funded in 1998-99 by an EFIC loan and a $21 million grant from aid agency AusAID.

“A director of Tenix’s Philippines subsidiary, lawyer Romela Bengzon, this week confirmed a police investigation into company contracts. She declined to comment further, citing her ongoing role with Tenix.

“Ms Bengzon is well known to the Australian embassy in Manila and is corporate secretary of the Australian New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines. In 2005, she was made a commissioner to advise on changes to the Philippine constitution. She is now the Philippines ambassador for international trade.”

Talks of meeting Aquino on TruthCom

By Evangeline de Vera,Malaya

Chief Justice Renato Corona yesterday accused a senator-judge in the impeachment trial of lobbying for a term-sharing agreement between him and Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio.

On Day 2 of his media blitz, Corona said Sen. Teofisto Guingona III called him up sometime in March 2011 to propose that he retire early so that Carpio could take over, being the next most senior magistrate in the high court.

Corona also talked of a lunch meeting with President Aquino sometime in July 2010, or shortly after the President was sworn into office by retired Justice Conchita Carpio Morales.

During the meeting, Corona said, Aquino asked for his opinion in creating the Truth Commission that would have made former president Gloria Arroyo accountable for irregularities in her nine-year administration.

Guingona and Malacañang denied Corona’s claims. Guingona said he and Corona lunched at his father’s but it was purely social. Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda confirmed the meeting, but said the matter of the Truth Commission was never taken up.

Last Wednesday, Corona appeared in GMA-7’s morning show, the first time since the impeachment trial started in January and a few days before the defense team starts its presentation of witnesses and evidence before the Senate sitting as an impeachment court. On the same day, he gave interviews with radio programs in the same network, and those of ABC-5 and ABS-CBN. He answered allegations contained in the Articles of Impeachment against him.

Senator-judges downplayed Corona’s media blitz.

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said details divulged by Corona in the interviews will not be considered as evidence by the impeachment court.

“Maski sabihin niya ng sampung beses, we will not take that as evidence until it is presented under oath to the court,” he said.

If Corona talks on the merits of the case, “that is his prerogative,” Enrile also said.

Enrile and Guingona expressed belief the impeachment court could not gag Corona.

“That’s his call, I don’t want to make any lengthy comment on that,” said Guingona.

“May sub judice d’un, but I guess he wants to play it that way. May rule tayo sana igalang niya pero ayaw niya, call niya ‘yun,” he also said.

Sen. Sergio Osmeña III said, “The sub judice (rule) is impossible to enforce because this is a very public trial…it is also a political trial the senators themselves are the ones who talk about it… the sub judice rule is to make sure that you don’t influence the decision maker and that sub judice is for jury trial.”

Corona, in an interview over the morning radio program at dwIZ, said the supposed term sharing between and Carpio was proposed before talks about his impeachment became public.

He said this prompted him to believe that Carpio’s desire to become chief justice could have pushed him to join moves to oust him from office.

“Isang araw… tumawag sa akin si Sen. Guingona, kung pwede akong yayain mananghalian. Okay sa akin sa lunch. Di ko alam ano pakay nya. Sabi ko huwag sa restaurant, hindi ako naglalalabas sa publiko. I try to keep to myself, so nag-lunch kami sa bahay ni ex-Vice President Teofisto (the senator’s father), New Manila,” he said.

Corona said after the main course, the younger Guingona asked him whether he had thought about retiring early, and just as casually suggested sharing his term with Carpio.

Corona is set to retire on Oct. 15, 2018 when he reaches the mandatory age of retirement of 70. Carpio is retiring a year after.

“Sabi ko sa kanya, labag sa Constitution iyan. Ako ay in-appoint for a specific term. Wala namang term-sharing (in the Constitution). Noong sinabi kong parang di legally possible iyon, he (Guingona) got the idea,” Corona said, adding that Guingona immediately cut the conversation after he made it clear that he was not amenable to “exploring talks in that direction.”

In his speech before SC employees on January 16, the first day of his impeachment trial, Corona hinted that Carpio was one of the three persons who have been conspiring to remove him from the SC. The two others are President Aquino and Liberal Party president Mar Roxas, who has a pending election protest at the Presidential Electoral Tribunal against vice president Jejomar Binay.

`SOCIAL LUNCH’

Guingona confirmed he met with Corona but denied raising the issue of term-sharing.

“I don’t know why he said those things. I don’t know what his motives are. Maybe you should ask him,” he added.

Corona, on his meeting with Aquino, said it was arranged by a retired SC justice, together with Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, and took place in the house of Aquino’s eldest sister, Ballsy Aquino-Cruz.

Corona declined to name the retired justice but sources said that it was Antonio Eduardo Nachura, a fellow Utopian in Ateneo Law.

During that meeting, Corona said Aquino asked for his opinion in creating the Truth Commission. At that time, Aquino has yet to issue his first Executive Order, which paved the way for the creation of the Truth Commission.

The EO was later declared unconstitutional by the tribunal for violating the equal protection clause in the Constitution.

Corona said he had advised Aquino not to single out Arroyo, which was the same position taken by the SC when it declared EO 1 unconstitutional.

“After lunch, si ES (Ochoa) at si Justice ay nanigarilyo sa labas at naiwan kaming dalawa ni President Noynoy. Nag-usap kami, tinatanong niya sa akin, ‘Ano bang tingin mo kung ako ay magtatatag ng Truth Commission, para habulin ang taong ito?’ Sabi ko, ‘Mr. President…, kako ako naman kung may ebidensya – ganoon ang role namin sa judiciary – kung may ebidensya, ituloy natin, pero kailangan susunod tayo sa Saligang Batas at sa requirement ng batas,” Corona said.

However, he said that unfortunately, this was not followed by Aquino’s legal team and insisted on singling out Arroyo.

Corona pointed out that when the SC decision on EO 1 came out, the court suggested that the Palace amend the EO, but the government did not do so. Instead, he said, the administration went on a campaign to disparage him, alleging that the Corona court had wanted to protect Arroyo.

JUDICIAL REFORMS

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said there was a meeting between Aquino and Corona in July last year, and it had been meant to lay the groundwork for reforms in the judicial branch to bridge the gap between the executive and judicial branches.

He said the meting even ended “pleasantly” despite the frank exchange of views especially on the President’s concern of whether Corona would render a decision based on fairness and legal precepts.

Lacierda said Corona’s revelation about the meeting between him and Aquino was done in bad faith.

He also said Corona’s media interviews are raising more questions instead of helping him in his impeachment trial.

He said while Corona is exercising his right to free expression, he is also trying to “obfuscate the main issue,” “spread dirt” and “complicate and muddle” a simple issue.

THREATS

Corona also defended himself against criticisms for doing the round of media interviews.

“What they can’t get in the impeachment court, they try to get in trial by publicity. Do they want the people to hear only their side? That cannot be,” he said.

He said he had long wanted to air his side in the media but his lawyers advised him against it.

Corona also said he has been receiving threats to his life. He said he has rented a bulletproof sports utility vehicle and complemented this with security escorts.

The former law firm of Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio belied Corona’s allegation it was behind the moves to oust him from the Supreme Court.

Corona has also alleged that the law firm CVC (Villaraza Cruz Marcelo and Angangco) is masterminding a “black propaganda” and “professional demolition and hatchet job” against him.

The CVC called Corona’s accusations “baseless” and said Carpio had long severed ties with the firm.

“These accusations and conspiracy theories are absolutely false and divert public attention away from the issues in his trial,” the firm said in a statement signed by senior managing partner and chief operating officer Bienvenido Somera Jr.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said going on a media blitz is “unbecoming of a chief magistrate.”

She said Corona’s position requires him to be apolitical.

“He is the highest official of the judiciary, which ought to be completely non-partisan and therefore should be devoid of political and partisan elements or personalities,” she said. – With JP Lopez, Jocelyn Montemayor and Ashzel Hachero