Decency and integrity

DIE HARD III
Herman Tiu Laurel
6/6/2011



It was in the early part of the Gloria Arroyo administration that a new private entity took over from government the latter’s operations at the North Expressway. That time, news of a giant oligarchic corporation advancing a new scheme of toll rates, with graphic charts of costs and revenue projections, filtered out of the National Economic Development Authority (Neda). Based on the story, the Neda chief then, upon watching the Power Point presentation, got intrigued by an item worth P700 million. After asking the company’s top honcho why those expenses purportedly for “legal intermediation” and “information” were so high, he was allegedly told that the item had already been “taken care of with Malacañang.”

If an official investigation were to be launched with an honest-to-goodness subpoena of documents, we can easily verify this. Many times before, we have tried to investigate issues related to tollways overcharging but have invariably been rebuffed whenever financial documents were demanded. Time and again, we have brought these issues to court to no avail.

In fact, some years ago, I was sued by the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) for P100 million in “damages” because of what I wrote. That court case lasted over five years. I dutifully attended every nuisance hearing even if MNTC only had its lawyers showing up. As the judge eventually ordered mediation, it was in one of those sessions that I finally faced the toll operator’s head, Jose “Ping” de Jesus, and told him off.

The North Expressway toll operations have since been transferred to yet suspicions on the hanky-panky deal still linger.

Incidentally, that time also marked De Jesus’ entry into a Pangilinan-controlled Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) both as director and chief operating officer. This happened as Meralco started making profit surges of over 100 percent per annum with nary a significant increase (at only 3 percent vis-à-vis RP’s population growth) in volume of electricity distributed.

Of course, such groundswell of profits could never have been obtained without some inveiglement of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to approve a rate setting mechanism, the obfuscated PBR or Performance Based Rate, that violates the law mandating electricity to be delivered “at the least cost” to consumers.

But being an executive then of the power distributor, was it wrong for people to have suspected a scenario in the Department of Transport and Communications (DoTC) under De Jesus that would veer positively toward an MRT privatization and its attendant fare increases?

“Decent” has frequently been attached to De Jesus’ name, especially in light of his Cabinet resignation. Don’t get me wrong: He does seem to look and behave decently. He was always very modestly dressed in white polo barong, smiling, when he used to host the Annabel’s media breakfast with some public works contractors through a lady PR. I also acknowledge that it doesn’t look as if he steals. But I do know of the oligarchic corporations that engage such professionals’ image and services for their economic and financial abuse of consumers as well as government resources.

These oligarchs remind me of Romulo Neri’s 2008 briefing on the “oligarchic state” to members of the political opposition where he outlined the different oligarchs and their control of different economic spheres, notwithstanding our national elections.

Now it seems Neri, who worked under a political kleptocracy, hasn’t been as fortunate. Political dynasties have had to face ritual public roasting to give credence to “democratic” accountability such that it is their minions that suffer the consequences. Although Neri tries to be “decent” by never lying (technically, that is), he also evinces a bureaucratic Omerta for the benefit of his political patrons.

On that score, the oligarchs’ executives are luckier. Though they are appointed to government to serve their masters’ interests, they don’t suffer the presumption of corruptibility due to their being compensated beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. Plus, they can always go back to the corporation they served after being its Deep Penetration Agent (DPA) in government.

In contrast, political minions only have their pitiful official salaries, making it essential for “extra incomes” to rationalize their privations in thankless political and public roles, with few ever getting jailed for these anyway.

Furthermore, the activities of these oligarchs are not defined as “criminal” despite their control of society’s powers. That’s because they define the terminologies of legality and decency through the media they control or the clout of their advertising money.

And so, the “decent” man has now left his DoTC post with other officials in tow. But that protest move was enigmatic at best since it seemed to be only a day in the life of some regular bureaucrats, with their rapidly shifting assignments and all.

Not surprisingly, speculations on the “fall-out” abound: From the MRT privatization; to the Land Transportation Office’s multi-billion computerization (involving Virginia Torres, herself linked to carnapping in Tarlac); to the international airport’s Terminal III. As you will see, these are all still about money and nothing about public service.

Decency truly won’t stop people from serving indecent and avaricious goals that bring this nation to ruin. They must have something more. Integrity — the unity of “being” good and “acting” good, of upholding what is fair and just — may be what’s needed for a good man who has integrity would necessarily object to any corrupt assignment offered to him.

Gen. Angelo Reyes, a decent man to his friends and associates, sadly was not possessed of the integrity that could have saved this nation and his family from the pain and ignominy of a cover-up to the death, all because of the love of money which he, in all his “decency,” never failed to “share.”

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