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THE Department of Justice fact-finding team formed to probe the
broadband controversy now has the powers to prosecute or issue
subpoenas to compel resource persons to attend its parallel inquiry
on the matter.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez on Sunday issued
the instruction to the fact-finding panel head, Undersecretary
Ernesto Pineda, and disclosed that former Socio-economic Planning
Secretary Romulo Neri has already agreed to appear in the panel’s
next hearing on Tuesday.
“He [Neri] will appear already. We don’t
want to bamboozle everyone,” Gonzalez, in a radio interview, said.
He did not give details.
Gonzalez said he already told the Pineda panel
that it has powers to issue subpoenas after their first two hearings
hit a snag because of the refusal of resource persons, including
Neri and star witness Rodolfo Lozada Jr., to appear.
Neri had twice snubbed the fact-finding
investigation, while Lozada claimed that the panel was created to
whitewash the case. The first hearing was scheduled last month and
the second on Friday last week.
The panel’s authority to serve summons or
issue subpoena was earlier sought by Pineda to give the panel teeth
against stubborn resource persons.
Lozada earlier questioned the powers of the
panel in a letter to Pineda.
“Your panel is not conducting a preliminary
investigation but rather a ‘fact-finding’ inquiry. To me this is
important because a preliminary investigation is authorized by the
Rules of Court, while a ‘fact-finding’ inquiry is not. The first
is legal, the second, political,” Lozada said.
Malacañang, for its part, through Deputy
Presidential Spokesman Anthony Golez, said that it is confused by
the attitude of the persons invited to shed light on the broadband
deal.
Golez stressed that the Justice department and
the Office of the Ombudsman are the proper bodies that should
conduct the inquiry on the broadband mess, and not the Senate.
The Justice department and the Ombudsman were
doing parallel investigations on orders of President Gloria Arroyo
amid allegations by Lozada that the broadband deal was anomalous.
Neri’s counsel, lawyer Gerardo Dacayo Jr.,
earlier said his client will only appear in any investigation,
including that of the Senate, after the Supreme Court has rendered a
decision on the principle of executive privilege.
-- William B. Depasupil
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