For the observers, De Lemos’ apology and justifications stink
The public call for the immediate resignation of NBI Director Medardo De Lemos is mounting.
Last June 30, the NBI held an official “command” conference at the plush Manila Diamond Hotel in Ermita, Manila with top NBI national and regional officials in attendance.
The entertainment fare of the conference consisted of a sexy and provocative dance number performed by several nearly naked women.
That lewd dancing incident seemed to go well with the NBI, until a videogram of it went viral online. The exposé created quite a backlash against the NBI in terms of public opinion.
Soon thereafter, De Lemos made a public apology, but he apparently downplayed the scandal.
In particular, De Lemos apologized for “any offense caused, particularly to women.”
He added the dance number was merely a part of a “fellowship” activity where regional and national officers of the NBI can simply “bond” together.
Observers in the social media found De Lemos’ apology superficial and equivocal. They want De Lemos to resign his post.
First, by apologizing for “any offense caused, particularly to women,” De Lemos seems to have impliedly denied the lewd dance number was offensive. They view De Lemos’ apology as a denial made to sound like an apology.
Second, De Lemos’ apology seems to dismiss the magnitude of the entire scandal by saying the lewd dance number is not objectionable because it was just a part of a “fellowship” activity where top NBI officials can “bond.”
To the observers on social media, what De Lemos meant to convey is that having many almost naked women dance provocatively in front of top NBI officials as the entertainment fare of an official NBI “command” conference is totally acceptable simply because it created an opportunity for NBI top brass to bond together.
For the observers, De Lemos’ apology and justifications stink.
Accompanying the De Lemos apology is his denial that public funds were spent to finance the conference and the dance number. He said the expenses for the conference were covered through contributions from NBI officials and agents.
To the angry public, De Lemos’ excuses only magnify the extent of the scandal.
First, it is absurd that an official “command” conference of the NBI was actually paid for with personal contributions from top NBI officials and agents.
Official conferences of government agencies are never paid for by personal contributions from the agencies’ personnel.
Second, even assuming the “command” conference was paid for by personal contributions from top NBI officials and agents, that arrangement is not a license for the NBI to include a lewd dance number in its entertainment fare.
In the opinion of the critics, De Lemos seems to have the mindset that if an activity is paid for by “private funds,” it is totally acceptable for the activity to include a provocative dance number performed by several nearly naked women.
The critics maintain a respectable NBI director should never have that kind of mindset.
Accordingly, they insist De Lemos should resign his post immediately, and that as long as De Lemos remains as NBI director, the word “integrity” in the official NBI seal should be erased.
Gabriela partylist Representative Arlene Brosas says the scandalous NBI conference treated women as sex objects, and De Lemos may be held liable for violating Republic Act 6713, or the Code of Conduct for Public Officials and Employees.
An online writer revealed De Lemos claims that had he (De Lemos) been at the conference, he would have most probably stopped the lewd show.
The online writer does not believe De Lemos’ claim, and likens him instead to Pontius Pilate, who washed his hands from any involvement in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Many observers agree with the online writer.
For them, it is inconceivable how and why De Lemos, as NBI chief, would not be present at an official “command” conference of the NBI.
The adjective “command” already indicates the conference must have been called under the authority of De Lemos himself.
Other observers called out that this lewd dance number scandal is just another of many controversies marking De Lemos’ one-year stint as NBI chief.
The news media reported that last June 20, six NBI personnel escorted Jose Dera out of the NBI facility in Manila, where he is detained on narcotics raps, for a clandestine date with a lady friend in a restaurant in Makati City.
Critics say an anomaly of that extent is certainly a reflection of the objectionable way De Lemos runs the NBI.
Indeed, the mounting public clamor for De Lemos’ resignation as NBI director erodes the public image of the NBI.
Observers stress the only honorable option for De Lemos is to spare the NBI any further discredit by resigning his post immediately.