Senate subpanel resumes probe vs. VP Binay

For the first time, Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile attended Tuesday the resumption of Senate Bue Ribbon subcommittee hearing on the corruption allegations against Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Enrile was detained at the Philippine National Police General Hospital for plunder and graft charges in connection with the alleged pork barrel when the subpanel started its hearing in 2014.

Also present at the hearing were Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, chairman of the subcommittee, and Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who filed the resolution initiating the investigation against Binay.

In his opening statement, Pimentel said they will end the probe with the consent of Trillanes and that recommendations of the subcommittee will be submitted soon.

“We will end today with the consent of the author of the resolutions. I assure you that the legislative ideas based on evidence gathered shall be forthcoming. I would like to remind everyone the subcommittee’s proceedings were undertaken in aid of legislation,” he said.

He added: “I’m confindent there will be more lessons learned and other ideas from the other subject matters I have mentioned earlier.”

He was referring to the other topics tackled during the duration of the hearing such Pag-IBIG Fund’s alleged granting of loans to favored contractors, Boy Scout of the Philippines and Alphaland joint venture agreement, University of Makati-College of Nursing and STI joint venture, and Makati senior citizens’ benefits, among others. —ALG, GMA News