The Department of Public Works and Highways chief said last week that several personalities involved in the flood control scandal will definitely spend Christmas in jail.
Secretary Vivencio Dizon has filed charges for violation of the Government Procurement Reform Act and the Anti-Graft and -Corrupt Practices Act against those whose names have been dragged into the mess, including lawmakers, public works officials, and private contractors.
In fact, the members of the Independent Commission on Infrastructure, along with the secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government Jonvic Remulla, have inspected the new Quezon City Jail facility in Payatas to see if it is already able to accommodate the detainees likely to be imprisoned for their involvement in the systemic plunder of taxpayer funds.
Remulla said the new facility complies with the Sandiganbayan’s requirement for proximity and capacity. He also estimates that the number of detainees could be between 200 and 1,000 individuals.
We imagine what could be going on in the minds of those who will be certainly hauled to court. Are they now envisioning themselves walking around the facility? Are their hearts sinking that their days as free men and women, able to enjoy the luxuries they sold their souls for, are now numbered?
A consolation: the Payatas jail has just been constructed. It is also said to have adequate medical provisions so that those detained could no longer feign the need for hospital arrest. They better hope the structure has been erected with greater care and better quality than the projects that they passed off as completed or satisfactory despite the fact that they were not.
We too can imagine the satisfaction and sense of justice, albeit partial, that would come at the sight of these people behind bars. What an early Christmas gift to a people who have been paying taxes diligently, who deserve the best from their government, but who have long suffered from flooding and inadequate infrastructure, and who have been cursed with a dearth of honest leaders.
But lest we get our hopes up, let us remember the following.
First, the names that are now familiar to us are not the only ones involved in the widespread scam. There are other types of projects in other provinces. Many of those who may be equally guilty are still not being named, and they must be hoping that all this will fade in time before their own secrets are exposed. Otherwise, they are ready to shout “persecution” and “smear job.”
Second, initial arrests are only that. There will be long-winded trials, and defense lawyers will use every trick in the book to get their clients off the hook. Years will pass. One or two may go to jail, but the majority will evade prosecution, post bail, secure favorable rulings – or, horrors, get elected again or appointed to plum posts.
Finally, it is not only the notorious personalities now being associated with the flood control mess who are the enemy. It is a collective thinking that government projects can be milked for personal gain, and can be manipulated so that it serves their selfish interests, first and foremost. It is the culture of impunity that has consigned our nation to a position where our potential is not fully realized and where our people continue to be shortchanged by their government.
So by all means, bring on the Christmas spectacle: it will be a good sight to see these people who lived in luxury spend the season away from their loved ones and locked up for their crimes.
The better and lasting gift, however, will come in the form of a government that is transparent and accountable, where the guilty get their comeuppance, where the people get what they deserve from their leaders, and where corruption is no longer the norm.
