PHNO-HL: DILG UNDERSEC PUNO RESIGNS, NOW FACES 2 INVESTIGATIONS IN CONGRESS

DILG UNDERSEC PUNO RESIGNS, NOW FACES 2 INVESTIGATIONS IN
CONGRESS

MANILA, SEPTEMBER 14, 2012 (PHILSTAR) By Aurea Calica
Resigned Interior and Local Government undersecretary Rico Puno is not yet off
the hook as far as the issue of the bidding for assault rifles for the
Philippine National Police (PNP) is concerned.
No one is in the clear yet, President Aquino said yesterday, including Puno,
on the issue surrounding the PNP's bidding for rifles that turned out to be more
expensive than prices quoted on the Internet.
"I would like to verify the bidding process and why it turned out this way.
So all those involved in that process should be investigated to determine why it
happened, particularly the rifle issue," he said.
"That is being investigated, you know very well I tasked (the late Interior)
Secretary (Jesse) Robredo to investigate why there were so many interested in
the first place, and it turned out that one bidder who was not able to conform
with the specifications won," Aquino said.
"What was wrong with the specs in the first place? Was there any defect in
the bidding process? Who should be held responsible for this? It seems to me
that they are going to purchase the rifles which specs are not made for the
police," he said.
"So tuloy-tuloy (the investigation would continue)," he added.
Separately, the PNP is about to wrap up a deal with a gun supplier for a
contract of almost 60,000 units of Glock pistols.
The gun deal is awaiting the signature of PNP chief Director General Nicanor
Bartolome.
In an interview with reporters at the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)
General Headquarters at Camp Aguinaldo, Aquino said he was still thinking of
giving Puno another position but not in the Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG) and not until all issues were cleared up.
Puno mentioned in his interviews that the President was eyeing a nice and
quiet job for him.
Aquino, however, said, "No, the quiet (job) is just his wish."
"Right now, it's under consideration but there is nothing confirmed. We'll
finish so many things but not in the DILG... if that could materialize," Aquino
said.
Asked if he could categorically say that Puno was not facing investigation or
any case on the rifle deal and the condominium incident, the President only
cleared Puno on the condominium incident.
Aquino said he had asked Puno questions about the condominium incident,
because the instructions were "specifically" only to clear the offices.
"When I issued that order... my understanding is he will assume the lockdown
of all the offices I wanted secured. Understandably, Superintendent (Oliver)
Tanseco was reminding him that no documents and papers should get out of the
offices of Secretary Robredo," he added.
"So when we were in Masbate looking for Secretary Robredo, I was on the
assumption that Puno had secured the vital documents and where they should be...
not to get them or read them but to see to it that nothing gets lost or
misplaced in the offices of Robredo," Aquino said.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, for her part, confirmed that she and Puno
were there during the supposed "raid" on the offices of Robredo.
"I never denied that I also went there. Because since I was the one who
reminded the President about the need to secure offices and the documents. So I
went there and he was also there," De Lima said.
"I was there, and a few minutes later, he came also. He saw and monitored the
offices (of Robredo) and secured the documents," she said.
De Lima, however, denied she and Puno went there together.
"I arrived (at the DILG). I came first. And several minutes later he was
there. But he was just there monitoring. He did not interfere. I felt also it
was my responsibility to do the securing of the documents," De Lima said.
De Lima also clarified that it was only in the offices of the DILG, Napolcom
and the PNP headquarters at Camp Crame where she and Puno saw each other during
the securing of the offices and documents.
"I do not remember who went ahead (at Napolcom).We hardly talked, just
acknowledged (each other)," De Lima said.
On the other hand, with regard to the condominium unit, De Lima said Puno was
not there when she visited the place.
De Lima also said she does not have in her possession any document belonging
to Robredo.
Probe team
Puno tendered his resignation on Aug. 31 – the same day Transportation
Secretary Manuel Roxas II was appointed Interior secretary – and announced it
last Tuesday, a move that was welcomed by several sectors, including Church
leaders.
Marbel, South Cotabato Bishop Dinualdo Gutierrez yesterday said that it was
"very good" news that Puno has stepped down.
Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes believed that even if Puno is no longer
connected with government, the Senate should still conduct an investigation.

"I approve of his resignation. However, I agree with Sen. Miriam Santiago
that he must still be investigated by the Senate for many alleged acts of
corruption and shady deals and lack of transparency," Bastes said.
Santiago called for a probe into the activities of Puno during his stint as
undersecretary of the DILG, particularly on what she described as a unique
situation in which Puno had control and supervision over the PNP instead of the
secretary of the Interior and Local Government.
Santiago said Puno must also answer questions about what he did to stop the
illegal numbers game jueteng as well as his alleged involvement in illegal
logging and the irregular deal to purchase arms for the PNP.
Santiago announced her plan to conduct an investigation on Puno during a
press briefing last Saturday.
A day later, Santiago said a resolution at the Senate would not be needed for
the hearing to push through, considering the committee on constitutional
amendments, revision of codes and laws, of which she is the chair, would conduct
the inquiry.
Apart from Puno, Santiago invited De Lima, Roxas, Executive Secretary
Pacquito Ochoa Jr., and Ma. Leonor Robredo.
Mrs. Robredo declined to attend the hearing because she was still grieving
over the death of her husband.
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, however, said the Senate must be careful
in taking this course of action, especially with most of the intended resource
persons coming from the executive branch.
"We will see if motu propio (on its own), any committee in the Senate can
just call a hearing to evaluate an office because that is normally a function of
the executive department," Enrile said.
"We might be going beyond our mandate because we will be treading in the
domain of the presidency since the executive department is under the President.
He has control and supervision over all departments of government," he added.

Santiago, who was not present at yesterday's plenary session because of
hypertension, was still pushing forward with the hearing in spite of the
concerns raised by Enrile.
In an advisory sent by her office, Santiago announced a change of venue for
the hearing, from one of the smaller committee hearing rooms to the bigger
session hall.
Enrile said the ideal course of action of Santiago would be to avail herself
of the so-called question hour during which the Senate could call on any
official to respond to questions raised by the legislators.
Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III, chairman of the committee on rules,
said there was a precedent to what Santiago intends to do in the case of Puno.

For as long as the matter to be taken up is covered by the scope of the
concerned committee, Sotto said there should be no problem.
Considering that the committee chaired by Santiago covers the revisions of
codes and laws, which Sotto noted had a wide range of issues, then the hearing
could be justified.
"But unless somebody questions it on the floor, I will not lift a finger,"
Sotto said.
The House of Representatives also wanted Puno investigated over the firearms
deal.
But Cebu Rep. Pablo John Garcia, chairman of the House committee on public
order and safety, said the congressional probe on Puno could not start
immediately since the chamber is still focused on deliberations on the proposed
national budget.
Garcia said he was aware of the resolution filed by Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop
and Agham party-list Rep. Angelo Palmones directing the House to investigate
Puno over the firearms deal.
"I anticipate that we may be able to start the investigation maybe next
month, that is, there would be no intervening events, or a duplication if the
Senate will conduct its own inquiry," Garcia said.
House Minority Leader Suarez said the PNP modernization is becoming another
casualty in the politicking in the DILG.
Suarez noted the scrapping of the plan to purchase assault rifles for the
PNP.
"Even when I was still in the private sector, the winning bidder is always
subject to attack by the losing bidders. Such attacks may take the form of legal
cases and vicious articles in the media. If every public contract will be
overturned upon mere suspicion of anomaly, then we will never achieve
modernization. This is very unfortunate because modernization of the PNP/AFP is
a proper step forward," Suarez said. – With Marvin Sy, Sandy
Araneta, Paolo Romero, Evelyn Macairan

Undersecretary Rico Puno resigns
The Philippine Star Updated September 11, 2012 04:02 PM 58 comments
to this post
MANILA, Philippines - Controversial Undersecretary Rico Puno on
Tuesday announced that he has resigned from his post in the Department of
Interior and Local Government.
In a two-page statement released by Malacanang, Puno said he opted to keep
silent all this time due to the confidential nature of his job and that he
wanted to "thank President Aquino for his trust and confidence in giving me the
opportunity to serve the country and the people."
Puno said that he resigned in support of President Benigno Aquino III's
request that newly-installed Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas
be given a free hand to choose his own people.
"Moving forward, I have resigned as [Department of Interior and Local
Government] Undersecretary to support the President's decision to give a free
hand to the incoming secretary in forming a new team," he said in his statement.

Puno also touched on reports that he raided the offices and condominium unit
of the late Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo last August 19.
He said that he decided to remain silent despite the allegations because he
was "duty-bound to act with restraint and circumspection, even when subjected to
personal attacks in the mass media."
"Violating the confidential nature of my duets may expose people to danger or
jeopardize critical operations... This is why I opted not to react to the
speculative accusations that have been hurled against me by some media
organizations," he said.
Puno included in his statement the "chronology" of events that supposedly
transpired on August 18 and August 19, the days when he and a team of policemen
reportedly "raided" the offices and condominium unit of Robredo:
Saturday, August 18, 2012
2045 H (8:45 pm) (Mactan Cebu International Airport) •Boarded the Cebu
Pacific flight to Manila. When I was about to board, the President called and
instructed me to secure the offices of Secretary Robredo. I relayed the
instructions to Superintendent Oliver Tanseco, deputy chief of the Office of
Internal Security in Secretary Robredo's office.
2230 H (10:30 pm)(NAIA 3 Terminal) •Arrived in Manila
2330 H (11:30 pm) PNP Director-General's Quarters, Camp Crame "White House"
•Proceeded to the PNP Director-General's Quarters. Among those present there
were Usec. Austere Panadero, PNP Director-General Nicanor Bartolome, Ms. Joan de
la Cruz, a member of Secretary Robredo's staff and S/Supt. Tanseco. •The
President called again and I reported the offices have been secured.
Sunday, August 19
0900 H (9:00 am) •Supervised sealing of Secretary Robredo's Office at DILG
Quezon City accompanied by the following: S/Superintendent Joel Pagdilao,
Superintendent Oliver Tanseco, Chief Inspector Apollo Togonon and other security
officers of Sec. Robredo.
0930 H (9:30 am) •Informed by Superintendent Tanseco that there were
documents inside the residence/condominium of the Secretary.
1000 H (10:00 am) •Led team to secure Secretary Robredo's condominium unit;
stayed in condominium lobby; instructed team to sign condominium log book to
document our presence; left condominium after about 20 minutes.
1030 H (10:30 am) •Arrived at Camp Crame and supervised sealing of Secretary
Robredo's office; left Camp Crame after about 15 minutes.
1130 H (11:30 am) • Arrived at National Police Commission (Napolcom) building
in Makati City; supervised sealing of Secretary Robredo's office; left after
about 20 minutes.
1500 H (3:30 pm) • Accompanied Secretary of Justice and Presidential Security
Group team that performed inspection, sealing and securing of Secretary
Robredo's: a) DILG office; b) condominium unit; c) Camp Crame office; and d)
Napolcom office. Entire operations were completed at around 7:00 pm.
Puno stressed that since he was appointed as Undersecretary for Peace and
Order in the DILG, he was able to introduce reforms to ensure full transparency
of procurement and bidding processes.
"We have streamlined these processes to achieve the President's objective of
getting 'the biggest bang for the buck' in providing basic equipment to enable
our uniformed personnel to perform their tasks effectively," he said.
He added: " I believe that I have carried out my assigned duties to the best
of my ability." with a report from Aurea Calica
Now, Puno faces 2 probes in Congress By Cathy
Yamsuan, Christian V. Esguerra Philippine Daily Inquirer 2:22 am | Thursday,
September 13th, 2012
When it rains, it pours for resigned Interior Undersecretary Rico E. Puno.


[PHOTO -PNP chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome: Priming up?
Bartolome is said to be the choice of President Aquino to replace Puno, who has
resigned Tuesday INQUIRER FILE PHOTO]
Besides a Senate hearing scheduled for Friday, Puno will also be investigated
by the House committee on public order and safety in connection with the
purchase of around 60,000 pistols worth P1 billion for the Philippine National
Police.
The investigation will take place in about two weeks because the chamber is
still preoccupied with plenary deliberations on the proposed P2-trillion
national budget, said Cebu Representative Pablo John Garcia, chairman of the
committee.
Garcia said the House inquiry was prompted by a resolution filed by
Representatives Angelo Palmones of the Agham party-list group and Romeo Acop of
Antipolo City. He said this should not be seen as an attempt by the House to
gang up on the beleaguered undersecretary for police affairs in the Department
of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
"Usec Puno has already said that he had nothing to do with (the purchase) and
it was not overpriced and the process was regular—(the hearing) could be an
opportunity and a forum for him to properly air his side," Garcia said in a
phone interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Puno, a shooting-range buddy of President Benigno Aquino, quit his post amid
the controversy surrounding the purported "raids" he had conducted on the
offices and condominium unit of the late Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo. Puno
has denied any wrongdoing.

Limited to pistol purchase
Unlike the Senate probe, which is expected to also cover "jueteng"
operations, the House inquiry would be limited to the pistol purchase, Garcia
said.
In their resolution, Palmones and Acop said the investigation should be done
"for purposes of good governance, transparency and accountability."
"The bidding process of … the procurement of firearms as of the recent report
has not been completed, and that some bidders have not complied with the
required eligibility documents and other necessary bidding documents to qualify
for the bid," they said.
"Some information is being circulated that there is now a winning bidder for
the afore-cited police firearms, which is inconsistent with the established
bidding procedures…"
A number of PNP officials involved in the bidding process would also be
summoned to the House inquiry, said Garcia.
The committee will proceed with the investigation even if no less than
Malacañang had cleared the P1-billion deal for the purchase of Glock 17
(Generation 4) 9mm pistols. Glock Asia Pacific Ltd. and its local affiliate,
Trust Trade, cornered the contract last August 31.
"Remember, we don't have problems with the pistols—the (ones manufactured and
distributed by) Glock. There's no problem with the bidding on Glock. It was the
bidding on the rifle that the President has some concerns," presidential
spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, earlier said.
Mr. Aquino reportedly halted the bidding for PNP rifles following the
discovery that those to be procured had been overpriced.

Senate probe defective
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile (photo) on Wednesday raised
possible technical defects in Friday's hearing on Puno in the upper chamber,
pointing out the absence of a resolution or a proposed legislative measure to
justify the inquiry.
There are only two Senate committees—rules chaired by the majority leader and
public accountability or blue ribbon—that can conduct investigations motu
propio, he said.
Enrile suggested that the Senate committee on constitutional amendments and
revision of codes and laws headed by Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago might not
be the appropriate panel to "evaluate" Puno's performance in the DILG.
Santiago announced earlier this week she wanted Puno to justify why he
assumed the department's supervision over the police when this was clearly a
responsibility of Robredo, who died in a plane crash on August 18. She said the
inquiry would determine whether Puno's assumption of powers of the interior
secretary violated the Administrative Code.
She said that because of this "irregular" setup, the illegal numbers game
jueteng continued to thrive throughout the country under the Aquino
administration.
Enrile reminded Santiago that her committee was concerned "only with
proposals to amend the Constitution or revise existing laws." He said that the
Senate committee on public order and illegal drugs chaired by Senator Gregorio
Honasan would be a more appropriate panel for the investigation.
Question hour

[PHOTO -Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago]
Or, Santiago can arrange for a Question Hour as provided by the Constitution
since she also intends to invite Cabinet secretaries to the investigation,
Enrile said.
A chamber of Congress can invite a Cabinet secretary to answer questions
related to his department during the Question Hour. This is usually done during
urgent situations such as a power crisis.
Enrile noted that among the invited guests to the hearing are Executive
Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. and incoming Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas.
Santiago earlier said that in case the Senate assigned another committee to
investigate Puno, she would insist that her panel be the primary committee in
the effort.
Enrile said he had nothing against Santiago's planned face-off with Puno
except that it would be better if she filed a resolution calling for the probe
before conducting a hearing.
"With due respect to Senator Miriam, an evaluation of Undersecretary Puno's
performance is a function of the executive department. That is not within the
jurisdiction of the Senate," he said.
"Only the President can evaluate the members of his official family, not the
Senate. Besides, the undersecretary's position is not among those subject to
confirmation (by the Commission on Appointments)," he added.
Witnesses can object
The Senate President said that apart from the rules and blue ribbon
committees, those with oversight functions could also hold investigations motu
propio but only in connection with the responsibilities of that specific
committee.
"I will not be the one to question all of this because as Senate president, I
head the institution. But we have to examine the legalities because there might
be issues that would be raised," Enrile warned. He said he did not raise the
warning as a favor to Puno.
"I am not saying that. However, those to be called to the investigation can
raise an issue about it," he explained.
Enrile said he had instructed Senate Majority Leader Tito Sotto and the
chamber's legal division to check whether Santiago could hold the investigation
without a resolution.
A senator who requested anonymity said Santiago's hearing could proceed if
there's no objection raised to it.


Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
All
rights reserved




PHILIPPINE
HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/phnotweet

This is the PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE (PHNO) Mailing List.

To stop receiving our news items, please send a blank e-mail addressed to: phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Please visit our homepage at: http://www.newsflash.org/

(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
-------------------------------------------------------------Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/

<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional

<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/join
(Yahoo! ID required)

<*> To change settings via email:
phno-digest@yahoogroups.com
phno-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/