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PUBLISHED ON September 27, 2007 AT 8:24 PM

By BENJIE OLIVEROS

Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo’s name cropped up in a corruption scandal once again. It has barely been a week since the Sandiganbayan found former President Joseph Estrada guilty of plunder and a scandal has erupted again involving the husband of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

This is instructive of the fact that no big fish would be caught in the so-called campaign against corruption except those who have fallen from power. For in this country, public office is used for private gain. It is a folly to think that the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act which prohibits relatives of government officials up to the third degree of consanguinity from engaging in business with the government, is being followed. Unlike in the past, the use of cronies is no longer fashionable after what happened to the Marcos family where cronies kept the assets entrusted to them for themselves.

Credible

The exposé of Jose De Venecia III regarding the anomalies in the National Broadband Network (NBN) contract with the China-based ZTE Corp. and the involvement of influential officials in the Macapagal-Arroyo administration such as Mike Arroyo and Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chair Benjamin Abalos is very credible. For one, this is not the first time that the name of Mike Arroyo was implicated in a corruption scandal (Remember the Jose Pidal bank account?). It is so hard to think that his name keeps on cropping up just because of a demolition job by the opposition or by any of the perceived enemies of the administration. A demolition job is only as effective as the weakest point of the target. And as the saying goes, “when there is smoke, there is fire.”

Second, the motives of Jose de Venecia III are very clear. He wants to outbid ZTE for the contract. His interest is purely business and not political. Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago’s claim that de Venecia (the son) is a “stool pigeon” working for those who are aiming for a power grab simply defies logic. (To be blunt, logic is not one of the best attributes of Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago who staunchly stood by Estrada when he was in power and is now a rabid defender of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Her “logic” is based on who is in power.)

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THE NEWS IN PICTURES

Stop Militarizing Communities! Members of farmer's group Kilusang Magbubukid sa Pilipinas in Southern Mindanao Region held a rally October 8 in front of the headquarters of the Eastern Mindanao Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in Camp Panacan, Davao City. The group called for the pullout of troops conducting massive military operations in Tamayong in Davao City, Talaingod in Davao del Norte, Monkayo in Compostela Valley and in the towns of Baganga, Cateel, Boston in Davao Oriental and Lingig Surigao Del Sur. (Photo by Jonald Mahinay/davaotoday.com)

Full Capacity. Normally, passenger vans are allowed to carry 14 people. But this one is apparently beyond its carrying limit as it negotiates the zigzag road in Sulop, Davao del Sur, a known accident- and landslide-prone area. (Photo by Keith Bacongco / AKP Images)

The Child as Vigilante. A 10-year-old boy carries a firearm and joins members of the Ilaga, an infamous anti-Moro militia, in its camp in Aleosan, North Cotabato. The child's father leads the dreaded vigilante group in the area. (Photo by Romy Elusfa/Philippine Human Rights Reporting Project)

Under Repair. A "Skylab," the most common mode of transportation in the Agusan provinces and elsewhere in Mindanao, undergoes a repair at a shop in Butuan City. The motorcycle is fitted with wooden "wings" on both sides -- hence the moniker -- and is capable of carrying up to eight passengers. (Photo by Keith Bacongco / AKP Images)

Free At Last. Pastor Berlin Guerrero of the National Council of Churches of the Philippines, shown above with wife Mylene, was released after 15 months in police detention. He had been abducted and went missing for days before the police came out to say that he was arrested on a murder charge, which his family and colleagues said had been fabricated. A court ordered him released on Sept. 11. (Photo by arkibongbayan.org)

Displaced. This family in Pikit, North Cotabato, is among those displaced in the ongoing military offensive in several areas in Mindanao. Human rights group Kawagib has denounced the ongoing campaign, saying it has victimized thousands of civilians. (Photo from Kawagib

End The War. Members of the youth group Anakbayan denounce the war being waged by the government in Mindanao against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. (Photo: arkibongbayan.org)

Where Are They? Relatives, friends and colleagues of victims of enforced disappearances commemorate the International Day of the Disappeared with lighted lanterns and photographs at the Plaza Miranda and in Mendiola on Aug. 30. (Photo: arkibongbayan.org)

Free at Last. The so-called Tagaytay 5 -- Aris Sarmiento, Axel Pinpin, Riel Custodio, Michael Masayes and Rico Ybañez -- shown here inside their prison cell during their incarceration, were freed yesterday. “The dismissal of trumped-up charges and release of Tagaytay 5 is a victory for human rights,” said Ruth Cervantes, Karapatan's public information officer. (Photo: freetagaytay5.net)

Displaced. Residents of North Cotabato have been the ones badly affected by the military offensives launched against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. "As the government continues to indiscriminately drop bombs on Moro and Christian villages in Aleosan and Pikit, more and more civilians are displaced," said Kawagib, a Moro human-rights group.(Photo: Suara Bangsamoro/arkibongbayan.org)

In One Roof. Villagers who fled their homes after the clashes last week between government troops and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in the south brought every human life with them, including their farm animals. They now live under one roof at an evacuation center in Pikit, North Cotabato. (Photo: Bong Sarmiento / Philippine Human Rights Reporting Project)

Emergency. A scene from "Ambulancia," a short film that tells of a painful twist in an ambulance driver's belief that a dying patient can be saved by running over stray animals on the streets. The award-winning film will be screened at the so-called "Woodstock of short films" in Germany. Richard Legaspi directed the film and it stars Alan Paule and Nor Domingo. (Contributed photo)

Sendoff. The Philippine Army dispatched today, Aug. 10, the 68th Infantry Battalion to Maguindanao. This battalion, together with the 46th Infantry Battalion from Samar, will augment the troops in Central Mindanao for the security operations that will be conducted to ensure peaceful elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao tomorrow. (Photo: Philippine Army)

Killings Denounced. Mindanao journalists gathered in General Santos City on Friday to denounce the recent attacks on their colleagues. On Monday, Dennis Cuesta, a Radio Mindanao Network commentator in General Santos, was shot and is fighting for his life. On Thursday, another RMN broadcaster, Martin Roxas of Capiz City, was shot dead. (Photo by Barry Ohaylan/davaotoday.com)