Philippine Pork Barrel Scam (How corruption is embedded in a politician's DNA) Part 2 (Updates)

So the saga continues...

I admire how DOJ's Sec. Leila de Lima is fearless in how she face things and I just hope that it isn't publicity for the present admin but for real justice.

De Lima: Raps vs. lawmakers in pork barrel scam to be filed 'in a few weeks'

By PATRICIA DENISE CHIU,GMA News

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) was able to confirm the involvement of several lawmakers in the alleged “pork barrel scam,” and charges are forthcoming, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Tuesday.

"We were able to confirm the involvement of some lawmakers—members of the Senate and the House—but we don't know yet whether the list that we have now is complete, so we are verifying it,” De Lima said in a chance interview at the House of Representatives following her attendance to an event there.

Without giving names, De Lima said the charges will be filed “in a few weeks’ time.”

“We will file cases only by evidence, whether testimonial or from documents,” she said.

The supposed scam refers to the P10 billion in pork barrel — or the multi-million Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) given to lawmakers every year — that went to bogus non-government organizations (NGOs). Businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles has been accused of masterminding the scam.

Non-partisan

Meanwhile, De Lima, who as justice secretary has direct supervision of the NBI, assures the public of the non-partisanship of the team that investigated the scam.

“There is no such standard in segregating,” she said. “The NBI is not partisan in any investigation and it will not be affected or damaged by partisanship or color.”

She, however, stressed that “right now I can’t tell you if we’re filing cases against the opposition or the administration solons.”

De Lima did not also say if the NBI, through the Department of Justice (DOJ), is moving to freeze Napoles’ assets. She said the agency would like to hold some secrecy in its investigation.

“It’s not advisable that we announce in advance such moves,” she said, adding that she has instructed the NBI not to discuss the investigation with the media.

Bigger team

De Lima also noted that the team conducting the investigation has  grown significantly, due in part to the request of Napoles, who did not want the same team that took custody of supposed whistleblower Benhur Luy to handle the investigation for fear of conflict of interest.

“It’s a bigger and more enhanced team now. We already assigned additional men particularly from the anti-fraud and legal departments. Malaking team, under (my) supervision,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Justice secretary distanced herself from any possible congressional probe on the matter, leaving the decision in the hands of lawmakers.

"We leave it to them when they would want to start their own investigation, although the leaderships of the Senate and the House have announced that they want to wait for the NBI investigation first so as not to muddle things," De Lima said.

Tagle gets emotional

While De Lima was providing more information on the "pork-barrel scam" investigation, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle spoke at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila and emotionally called for a closer probe into the alleged multi-billion-peso scam.

Speaking at a press conference, Tagle branded the scam as "heartbreaking," the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines said on its news site.

“Who will not be shocked with these reports and with the magnitude of money involved?... It’s like your heart is broken into pieces. Can one really do this to one’s neighbor? Can one really stomach causing this kind of damage on the country?” he said.

The CBCP said Tagle, who had famously cried during his installation as a cardinal, again broke into tears as he dared politicians and other personalities linked to the “intricate web” of corruption to visit the poor and slum areas.

He said those accused should get a real feel for how the poor live, just so they realize their Priority Development Assistance Fund should be spent properly.

“On my own, I just think those that are doing such things are capable because the poor is absent in their lives. Maybe they cannot see them or they don’t want to see them,” he added.

Also, Tagle said an investigation into the pork scandal along with past scandals is "really necessary," lest they be "in danger of being forgotten.”

But he added those involved in the scam can still reform.

“I still believe that there is goodness in every person. You can be better than this. And you cannot deny it. There is goodness in you, which comes from God,” he said. — KBK/DVM, GMA News

We really do need a mighty goliath to fight the rampant corruption in our government and I do hope that this issue will not die like the maguindanao massacre. I'm looking forward to the lawmakers that are involved and will be charged. I wonder what is happening to the lawmakers that are tagged with the scam, I wonder if they are anxious and paranoid. The government should try to protect the whistleblowers as many whistleblowers in the maguindanao massacre were killed.

Lawmakers dragged in pork barrel scam prepare defense

By Christian V. Esguerra

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Congressmen implicated in the alleged pork barrel scam have begun readying their defense, as Justice Secretary Leila de Lima warned on Wednesday, that members of the executive branch could also be included in the charges.

De Lima said she would not release the names of legislators allegedly involved in the scam, until the completion of the investigation.

“We are not yet done identifying exactly the lawmakers and other executive officials who could be charged because there is sufficient evidence,” she said during the congressional hearing on the Department of Justice budget.

“We will only announce that list when we are ready really to file already the charges and we will endorse that, we will endorse the report of the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) to the Ombudsman with our recommendations and Ombudsman will act accordingly.”

“What is clear to us now, to the NBI, is the scheme used by JLN (company) and Janet Napoles in relation to PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) and in relation to Malampaya (funds),” she added.

Members of the House of Representatives who would eventually land in the charge sheet would not be able to hide behind parliamentary immunity, said 1-BAP Rep. Silvestre Bello III, a lawyer.

“Their immunity only covers prision correctional, (meaning the) penalty enforceable is six years below,” he said in a weekly House minority press briefing.

“This is plunder. We will probably see each other at Veterans’ Hospital,” he said in jest, seemingly referring to former President Gloria Arroyo who’s detained in the hospital while facing separate charges of plunder and electoral sabotage.

Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab, chairman of the powerful committee on appropriations, denied involvement in the scam, insisting that he did not know or had met Napoles, the alleged brains behind the P10-billion pork barrel scam.

“If the truth is on your side, why be afraid?” he said during a break at the budget hearing. “I have never asserted a single lie in my public life.”

Ungab said he had prepared documents and pictures showing that projects funded by his pork barrel were “fully implemented.”

“My conscience is clear since I kept a record of all my projects,” he said. “I have my list of beneficiaries. I have my pictures and they are warm bodies because I saw the distribution.”

Cagayan De Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, who was also implicated in the controversy, said he was not aware that P3 million of his PDAF allocation had gone to a “fake” non-government organization by Napoles.

“We did not know that it went to the fake NGO, never did we know that. In fact, we are calling for the investigation of this NGO that is fake,” he told reporters.

Minority Leader Ronaldo Zamora urged De Lima to “name names” in connection with legislators allegedly involved in the pork scam. Bello said they would eventually be identified once cases were filed.

De Lima made a distinction between legislators who “benefited” in the PDAF racket and those who were “merely a victim.” She said the latter would not be charged.

Rodriguez said his signature was forged in the paper work that allowed a fake NGO to take a portion of his PDAF.

It's so sad that NGOs are dragged into the scam. The fund that should help the NGOs for social services are taken away and apparently NGOs are also a part of Social Growth of the country. The NGOs serves as a medium between the government and the people just like the media is. The NGOs are the wheel for social awareness, and areas that the government are unable to handle. It's premature to name the lawmakers this early without concrete evidence and they might flee the country.

Cardinal Tagle cries over pork scam

BY PATERNO ESMAQUEL II

'HEARTBREAKING.' Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle backs the investigation into the pork barrel issue. Photo by Arcel Cometa'HEARTBREAKING.' Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle backs the investigation into the pork barrel issue. Photo by Arcel Cometa

MANILA, Philippines – Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle broke his silence on the pork barrel issue on Tuesday, August 13, and backed the investigation into the scam that he denounced as “heartbreaking.”

“Sino bang Pilipino na merong pagmamahal sa bayan ang hindi mababagabag, at lalo na kung ikaw ay may kaunting pagsunod kay Hesus? Parang nadudurog ang puso mo na, kaya bang gawin ito ng tao sa kapwa tao? Kaya ba talagang sikmurain na magagawa ang ganito kalaking, kumbaga, kasiraan para sa bayan?” Tagle said in a press conference on the upcoming Philippine Conference on New Evangelization (PCNE).

(What kind of Filipino who has love for country will not feel disturbed, especially if you follow Jesus? It’s like your heart is broken into pieces in asking, can one really do this to one’s neighbor? Can one really stomach inflicting this kind of damage on the country?)

Sometimes, he said, he thinks the corrupt can stomach this because “the poor are absent in their minds and their hearts.”

Tagle challenged not only politicians, but also others involved in this “intricate web” of corruption, to visit the homes of the poor.

Breaking into tears, the pro-poor cardinal said: “Siguro maglakad-lakad kayo sa gabi, kapag nasa bangketa ka na, makikita mo ‘yung… ‘yung mga pamilya na nagbubukas ng kariton, para doon matulog. Mahawakan lang ninyo ang kamay ng mga mahihirap. Siguro naman maaantig ang inyong puso, sana.”

(Maybe you could walk around at night, and when you reach the alleys where the poor live, you can see the… the families who open their carts, to sleep there. Hold their hands. I hope it will move your hearts – hopefully.)

Most prominent voice

Tagle is the most prominent Catholic figure who has spoken out on the pork barrel scam.

He was responding to questions by reporters during the press conference on the upcoming PCNE, a 3-day event in the University of Santo Tomas that aims to rekindle the Catholic faith.

Tagle also told the people involved in the issue: “You can be better than this… There is some goodness in you that comes from God, and let that true self of yours come out.”

Before Tagle, the vice president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in July criticized the pork barrel as a tool “to strengthen the clutch of politicians to power.”

READ: ‘Man does not need pork to go with bread’

“Man does not live on bread alone, the good Lord taught us; but man does not need pork to go with bread,” said CBCP vice president Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, who will assume the CBCP presidency in December.

Senators and congressmen, however, have refused to investigate the scam that involves their colleagues. – Rappler.com

And the clergymen jives in. I hope all the religious church will help and voice out against the scrupulous lawmakers and open their eyes to the fact that not all political donations came from goodwill. Election period is a very good example of how lawmakers are afraid that they will not be endorsed by the religious. So, yes they really have a power of influence.

Stress over Napoles deal may have killed my wife’

By Julliane De Jesus

MANILA, Philippines – Retired Marines Colonel Ariel Querubin revealed on Wednesday that he only learned recently that his first wife died due to pulmonary hypertension allegedly caused by stress over an unpaid deal with Janet Lim-Napoles.

Querubin said in an interview with Radyo Inquirer 990 AM that his first wife, Dr. Loreta Querubin, died on August 19, 1994, a day after she and a doctor friend failed to get their investment back from Napoles.

He said his wife and her friend had invested in one of the business ventures of Napoles and had wanted to get their money back after the checks issued to them by Napoles bounced.

Napoles, head of trading firm JLN Corporation, has been linked to the alleged P10-billion pork barrel scam which is now being investigated by the Department of Justice and the National Bureau of Investigation.

Querubin said up until his wife’s death, he was unaware as to what had caused her hypertension until a friend, an ex-military doctor who he didn’t name, revealed in a recent interview with another media entity the money he and Loreta had invested with Napoles.

The interview of the ex-military doctor was held after the Philippine Daily Inquirer came out with its reports on the alleged pork barrel scam and Napoles as the purported mastermind.

Querubin said that Loreta and her friend had gone to Napoles’ place in Laguna to “pressure” her to pay at least the principal but Napoles, who was a godmother to the Querubins’ only daughter, did not show up.

Querubin, who was assigned to Basilan at that time, said he did not know that because of the stress Loreta was in, his wife had lost consciousness on the same day that she and her friend failed to meet Napoles.

Querubin said his wife’s friend told him how Napoles’ refusal to meet with them stressed out his wife.

Querubin said that after several months of attempting to get their money back, his wife and her friend finally met with Napoles in her office in Pasay City.

Napoles, however, refused to pay and the next day, Querubin said his wife died.

Querubin said that during the first day of the wake, Napoles visited and brought with her a priest and a choir while offering her apologies and payment in dollars of his wife’s investment.

For more details, listen to the audio clip of Colonel Querubin’s interview at Radyo Inquirer 990AM

You guys judge. What napoles did to the wife of Querubin is bad taste.

Napoles daughter owns P80M LA property

NATASHYA GUTIERREZ

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) - She was in her early 20s when she bought a luxurious, Los Angeles apartment in a building where Hollywood celebrities and public figures live.

According to online records of the Office of the Assessor of Los Angeles County and official records of the Recorder's Office, Jeane Napoles is the registered owner of Unit 37I at the Ritz-Carlton Residences in Los Angeles. The Assessor's office evaluates real property taxes, while the Recorder's Office assesses "special taxes."

The document does not mention the price of the unit or when exactly it was sold, but the unit itself was built only in 2010. The estimated selling price of the apartment today is pegged at P80-M or almost US $2-M.

RECORDS. Los Angeles County records show Jeane Napoles is the listed owner of Unit 37I at the Ritz-Carlton in LA. Photo by RapplerRECORDS. Los Angeles County records show Jeane Napoles is the listed owner of Unit 37I at the Ritz-Carlton in LA. Photo by Rappler

The Office of the Assessor says the unit is 1,610 sq-ft, and has two bedrooms and two baths. According to a popular real estate website, a 1,711 sq-ft apartment in the same building is priced at P81.5-M.

Jeane, who turned 23 last month, is the youngest daughter of Janet Lim-Napoles, the suspected head of an alleged syndicate behind a multi-million pork barrel scam. Her lifestyle has been put under the spotlight after her mother was linked by whistleblowers to a scheme involving the elder Napoles. Janet allegedly pocketed pork barrel money she acquired from senators and solons for ghost projects.

Records show the apartment is on 900 W Olympic Boulevard, the Ritz-Carlton address. The contemporary-style apartment is in a 54-story building and boasts of a panoramic view of city lights, hills, mountains, and the ocean.

A high school classmate of the aspiring fashion designer confirmed with Rappler that Jeane lived in the Ritz-Carlton while she was a college student studying at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM).

FROM INSIDE. This is a sample apartment in the posh Ritz-Carlton Residences. Photo from allaccessliving.comFROM INSIDE. This is a sample apartment in the posh Ritz-Carlton Residences. Photo from allaccessliving.com

Jeane moved back to Manila after her June graduation in the US. Before news of the scam broke, Jeane was seen attending high society events and was accompanied by bodyguards.

It is unsure whether she is back in the country, since recent photos shared on social media in the past weeks show her traveling to London and LA. The source told Rappler she is currently unemployed.

Her mother Janet admits funding her daughter's lavish lifestyle and expensive taste for clothing, shoes and jewelry, and even Porsche sports cars, but insists the purchases are made through hard-earned money from their legitimate businesses.

In an ABS-CBN report, Mrs Napoles confirmed co-owning a "P7-million hotel" near Disneyland in LA, but no mention of her daughter's apartment has been made.

Napoles defends her right to shop, and denies all accusations, adding she is willing to open her bank accounts as part of the National Bureau of Investigation's (NBI) probe into the scam.

Best of the best

According to the Ritz-Carlton Residence website, the apartment units are located on the 27th to the 52nd floor of the hotel building. The Ritz is described as "luxury residences" which "stand boldly as an icon above the bright lights of Los Angeles."

The Residences offer "breathtaking views, world class amenities and legendary Ritz-Carlton services," the website says. "Below sits LA Live, a new, vibrant, world-class entertainment district, envisioned as the 'Times Square of the West.' Popular clubs, dining, movie theaters, museums, sports and special events at the Staples Center are mere steps away."

VIEW FIT FOR A KING. This is one of the views available from the Ritz-Carlton Residences. Photo from allaccessliving.comVIEW FIT FOR A KING. This is one of the views available from the Ritz-Carlton Residences. Photo from allaccessliving.com

Its 5-star amenities include valet service, a spa, a pool and fitness center, high-class restaurants and an award-winning rooftop bar. Apartments have floor-to-ceiling windows.

Residents of the high-end downtown space are also treated like royalty. A program called All Access Living showers residents with "the exclusivity of VIP access at live entertainment venues; priority reservations at restaurants; and a view from the San Manuel Club where you’ll watch the NBA, the NHL and other pros do battle just below."

The attractions appear to be a good fit for the young lady, who has attended movie premieres and sports games in the Staples Center, according to photos on her blog showing her with Hollywood celebrities and cheering for sports teams.

It is not entirely known when Jeane started living in her Ritz-Carlton space, but a photo she posted on her blog dated January 2011 showed off her "new home," before she moved into the Ritz-Carlton.

NEW HOME. Jeane Napoles posts about her 'new home,' a luxury residence in downtown LA, 1010 Wilshire. Photo from Jeane Napoles' blogNEW HOME. Jeane Napoles posts about her 'new home,' a luxury residence in downtown LA, 1010 Wilshire. Photo from Jeane Napoles' blog

"Having only 2 months notice that I have to move to LA to move to the main FIDM campus had to make decisions fast. Luckily, my ever loving older brother found a nice place for me to live :) 1010 Wilshire will be my new home! penthouse babyyy <3," the post read.

TenTen Wilshire is another luxury residence in downtown LA, which also offers complete amenities and fully-furnished suites.

In an interview with Korina Sanchez for ABS-CBN, the elder Napoles said that since the 1990s, her family earned their money from coal-trading in China, India, Pakistan and Indonesia. An Indonesian business partner has also come forward to defend the legitimacy of the Napoles' business. - Rappler.com

Correction: This article has been revised to say Jeane Napoles was in her early 20s when she bought the apartment. We previously reported she was 22. The apartment unit was also corrected to 37I. An earlier report listed 37J. 

Aside from the channel watches, spanking car, luxurious clothes and jewely Jeane Napoles owns P80 million worth of condominium in LA. I don't know if the daughter knows where their source of income comes from and if she does know it came from the people of the philippines, she should also be charged.

DOJ indicts Napoles for illegal detention; arrest warrant out

(philstar.com) | Updated August 14, 2013

Janet Lim-Napoles

MANILA, Philippines – An arrest warrant has been issued against Janet Lim-Napoles, the suspected mastermind of the P10 billion pork barrel scam, after being indicted for illegal detention.

The Department of Justice has indicted Napoles for allegedly kidnapping whistleblower Benhur Luy.

According to reports, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima confirmed that a case has been filed before a Makati Court against Napoles for the allegation last December.

Napoles’ brother, Reynaldo Lim, is also included in the case, which according to De Lima, has no option for bail.

Operatives of the National Bureau of Investigation are reportedly on the way to arrest Napoles.

A few days ago, posters of Napoles have been distributed to all international airports to prevent the siblings from leaving the country.

The DOJ issued the "lookout" bulletin on the siblings as the government starts its investigation into the seven bogus non-government organizations allegedly controlled by Napoles as part of the pork barrel scam.

The Office of the Ombudsman has also started an investigation into the alleged misuse of P200 million public funds under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program in 2007 and 2008, which is allegedly related to the pork barrel scam.

The scam was exposed by Benhur Luy, an employee of Napoles, who is now under the government’s witness protection.

Napoles has denied the allegation and accused Luy of attempting to extort P300 million from her.

YESS!! there is an arrest warrant (even if it is just for illegal detention) still DOJ is moving on and trying to solve the scam and put to justice.