One by one, those associated with the Dutertes are falling like dominoes as waylaid by corruption charges and other crimes. Former Senator Bong Revilla was the first to be handcuffed for a ghost project in Bulacan. Incumbent Senators Joel Vilanueva and Jinggoy Estrada will, accordingly, follow Revilla in the cage, being linked to some flood control scandal also in Bulacan.
Joel and Jinggoy have the same feathers. They had flocked together to money traps. They were both jailed for the Napoles pork barrel scam. Now, they are in a new plunder case. They have not learned their lesson. The sight of quick and easy money paralyzes their learning skills.
On the other hand, while Senator Bato Dela Rosa, is not embroiled in any anomaly, he is on the run to escape an arrest by the International Criminal Court for his crime against humanity. The mother hen of the Duterte flock, VP Sara, is beleaguered by another round of impeachment. This time around, the Senate under Tito Sotto will be the one to try her. Her savior, Chiz Escudero, is reduced to a voting member. Her future as a political leader is getting dimmer by the hour.
Indeed, the marshland of Bulacan has become a quicksand for corrupt lawmakers and the DPWH top honcho. Former Secretary Manuel Bonoan and the big boys of Bulacan, Engrs. Henry Alcantara, Bryce Hernandez, and Jaypee Mendoza, are now charged with malversation and plunder, a non-bailable offense, and, thus, they would be kept in detention while awaiting trial.
Meanwhile, Senator Mark Villar and his kin are under the probe lens of the Ombudsman. The Senator was the DPWH Secretary under the Duterte administration, of which many, if not all, controversial flood control projects were initiated.
Chiz Escudero, the flood control icon in Sorsogon was not mentioned in the Sandiganbayan’s list of respondents to the flood control mess. Apparently, the Ombudsman is yet to build the case against him and other personalities.
The political tableau is getting weird. The lawmakers have become the primary lawbreakers.
(MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. William R. Adan, Ph.D., is retired professor and former chancellor of Mindanao State University at Naawan, Misamis Oriental.)
