3 frauds and a drip

DIE HARD III / Herman Tiu Laurel / October 28, 2013 / Daily Tribune

One fraud poses as a top defender of the territory of the Philippine Republic. A second poses as an anti-corruption crusader vs the opportunistic pork barrel system. Another is a global bank that local economists and business newspapers tout as a paragon of business virtue, with its endorsements of local finance officials cited as proof of their merit.

We have long and frequently denounced these frauds for what they are but it is not easy to expose them given the control of Philippine mainstream media by bigger fraudsters. Real events in the real world, however, would sooner or later unmask them.

The first fraud sits atop the highest defense post of the land. Last September, this fraud staged a scene announcing that Philippine reconnaissance had spotted 75 concrete blocks laid by the People's Republic of China's (PRoC) in an alleged prelude to the construction of a new base in Bajo de Masinloc. This information was dished out repeatedly by another fraud, a retired Philippine naval officer and Annapolis graduate who went around talk shows to lambast the PRoC. The Inquirer carried the story for weeks. But last Oct. 25, Malaya's Ellen Tordesillas burst the fraudsters' story in her report, "AFP probers say US, not China, put concrete blocks in Bajo de Masinloc."

Tordesillas wrote, "A military investigation found that the concrete slabs were covered by algae, an indication that they had been in the area for many years. The probe also found that the blocks had been used by the US Navy as 'sinkers' to preserve the wreckage of old ships they used for target practice."
Was the error just incompetence or a deliberate lie to please some higher master (in the US) while pushing military purchases?

The Philippine defense establishment has become the laughing stock of the Asian and global military community again; yet embarrassment is the least of the cost of this blatant faux pas. The loss for this country of billions worth of good will and investment from China is simply incalculable.

The next fraud is this "crusader" against political "pork" who has just latched onto the "People's Initiative to end Pork" of former Chief Justice Reynato Puno, by including it in his "Epirma" signature campaign against pork, political dynasties, while pushing the Freedom of Information (FoI) bill. This fraudster is obviously trying to package all motherhood statements under his umbrella and we have discovered the reason. Our sources are persons whom this fraudster had tried to recruit; and they've told this writer that the "Epirma" initiator even boasted of getting contributions from the top honchos of two major conglomerates. I have no doubt about these firms' participation as the "crusade" has been a perfect distraction from the oligarchy's shenanigans.

The third fraud you may help identify: Last week one business newspaper headlined, "BSP earns HSBC praise for "astute management." But I have been aware of the many penalties US and European financial authorities have imposed on Hongkong Shanghai Banking Corp. (HSBC), which the following headlines show: "HSBC Faces $2.46 billion Judgment in Securities Fraud Case..." (www.nytimes.com) and "HSBC to pay $1.9 billion US fine in money-laundering case" (Reuters). With so many crimes to its name, is HSBC a reputable endorser? What does this make of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) officials, i.e. Tetangco and Guinigundo, or of the business paper that uses HSBC as an authority on "management?"

But the biggest fraud of them all is a drip. The drip exposed more of his ineffectuality and weakness of character in a recent attempt to turnaround his deteriorating credibility and political stock. Faced with a crashing public image from the DAP (Disbursement Acceleration Program) "pork" exposé, despite the yeoman's efforts of controlled popular survey outfits to boost the perception of trust and popularity, this drip accused a "conspiracy" behind the attacks on his DAP pork. But wasn't it the drip's henchman in the Department of Budget and Management who cooked up DAP and Cory Aquino and Yellow stalwart, former Sen. Joker Arroyo, who first charged the DAP as an illegal animal?

Will Fraud Number One, the defense official, atone for his sin and resign after the gargantuan faux pas on the "concrete blocks" he wrongly accused China of placing at Bajo de Masinloc? We don't believe he is capable of such a dignified act since he seems to be fully inured to shame, not by a hide as thick as pachyderms or crocodiles, but because of a pineapple face that any shame would approach with trepidation. Will Fraud Number Two get his funds for his "crusades?" He certainly will, with the useful distraction it will provide for the money masters. As for Fraudster Number Three, is it HSBC, BSP, the newspaper, or all of the above?

Fraudsters are the plague of this country; they are in all sectors and come in all forms. We've discussed only three of these frauds here but they're all over. Then, of course, there's this one drip that the fraudsters of this land, using the fraud of Philippine elections, installed to preside over the fraud of Philippine democracy and economy. When will it all ever end?

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