{"id":120403,"date":"2017-09-30T04:03:56","date_gmt":"2017-09-30T08:03:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=120403"},"modified":"2017-09-30T04:03:56","modified_gmt":"2017-09-30T08:03:56","slug":"duterte-voices-plan-to-probe-similar-anomalies-in-ombudsman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2017\/09\/30\/duterte-voices-plan-to-probe-similar-anomalies-in-ombudsman\/","title":{"rendered":"Duterte voices plan to probe similar anomalies in Ombudsman"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"President<\/a>
FILE: President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, in his speech during the 120th founding anniversary of the Department of Justice (DOJ) at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City on September 26, 2017, reiterates that his intensified campaign against illegal drugs will remain unrelenting amid all the criticisms. (RICHARD MADELO\/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

MANILA<\/strong>\u00a0— \u201cJustice for one is justice for all. Sauce for the gander is sauce for the goose.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte had this to say as he expressed his plan to form a commission investigating corruption anomalies at the Office of the Ombudsman, which launched a probe into his and his family\u2019s alleged hidden wealth.<\/p>\n

The Chief Executive declared his willingness to subject himself to the Ombudsman\u2019s probe, saying that he has no problem allowing the anti-graft agency to open his books for scrutiny.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Ombudsman has investigated me ever since.\u00a0Hindi nahinto ‘yan<\/em>. Okay\u00a0lang sa akin ‘yan. Nasa gobyerno kami<\/em>,\u201d President Duterte said during his interview with Erwin Tulfo’s \u201cSa Totoo Lang\u201d aired on state-run PTV 4 on Friday.<\/p>\n

The President said he would even donate his wealth if it is proven that he had undeclared bank deposits worth PHP211 million.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, he said the Ombudsman should likewise not be spared from inquiry.<\/p>\n

The President said corruption practices also plague the agency, but it has so far dodged investigations because of its status as an independent body.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the name of public interest and in the name of justice and fair play, there ought to be a body who will investigate you also because the Ombudsman cannot investigate itself. Obviously, it is an anomaly,\u201d Duterte said, adding that he wants to create a commission to perform such task.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo what is the remedy of the Filipino\u00a0kung kayo mag sige hingi<\/em>?\u00a0Ako, huwag mo akong lokohin.<\/em>\u00a0Do not force my hand into it,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n

The Chief Executive brought to attention the rampant extortion activities within the agency. He revealed that some police, militarymen, and local politicians were forced to pay to have cases filed against them dismissed.<\/p>\n

\u201cKayong Pilipino, tanungin ninyo ‘yung may mga<\/em>\u00a0military\u00a0na nagkakaso diyan magkanong binayad nila, pulis, lahat<\/em>. Mayor, governors,\u00a0tanungin ninyo, bayad ‘yan. Bayad ‘yan<\/em>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

According to the President, he would order the agency to open its records and direct accused corrupt personnel to execute their affidavits.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, if I do not have the power to summon you, I can always go to the courts to apply for a\u2026 as an administrative remedial measure,\u201d he stressed. \u201cNow,\u00a0pag ayaw mong sumipot<\/em>\u00a0in obedience to that summon, I will move for your arrest, contempt of court, and will order the military or the police to arrest you.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Duterte also decried the apparent selective justice in the Ombudsman\u2019s investigation of government officials. He questioned why the body would not conduct probes on corruption accusations hurled against members of other political parties.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Yung kay<\/em>\u00a0Trillanes,\u00a0huwag niyo rin \u2018yun kalimutan. Kasi \u2018pag hindi, eh ibang istorya na ‘yan. Namumulitika\u2026 Wala namang Liberal nakita ko na puro naman sila may<\/em>\u00a0DAP cases.\u00a0Bakit ‘yung mga Liberal<\/em>\u00a0— are you beholden to the Liberals?\u201d the President asked.<\/p>\n

Foreign competition<\/p>\n

During the same interview, President Duterte conveyed his plan to allow foreign telecommunications companies to do business in the country to improve internet services for Filipinos.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only way to improve your service is\u00a0bigyan kita ng kompitensiya<\/em>,\u201d the President said, stressing that he would allow four to six foreign internet service providers to enter the country.<\/p>\n

He said a Chinese firm and a Singaporean-based company had already expressed desire to set up stations here.<\/p>\n

The Chief Executive earlier issued a warning to local telecommunications firms to improve the services that they provide to the public, otherwise they would have to compete with new players.<\/p>\n

The President said he remains grateful for the overwhelming support he has been receiving from the Filipino public, as shown in recent surveys.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo the Filipino people,\u00a0salamat ho (sa) suporta ninyo<\/em>. Because the surveys show, all, Pulse Asia, everything. So\u00a0walang<\/em>\u00a0manipulation.\u00a0Hindi<\/em>\u00a0fake news\u00a0\u2018yan<\/em>,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo\u00a0ako naman<\/em>, I am grateful, not elated.\u00a0Nagmamagandang loob ho ako sa inyo na naintindihan ninyo ang trabaho ko. \u2018Yun lang<\/em>,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

The President then reiterated his commitment to create genuine change in people\u2019s lives, particularly on ending the illegal drug problem and improving the country\u2019s economy so Filipinos no longer have to look for better jobs abroad.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MANILA\u00a0— \u201cJustice for one is justice for all. Sauce for the gander is sauce for the goose.\u201d President Rodrigo Roa …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":119776,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1145,16,95],"tags":[2797,14387],"class_list":["post-120403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headline","category-news","category-news-ph","tag-ombudsman","tag-rodrigo-roa-duterte","mauthors-philippine-news-agency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120403"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120403\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/119776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}