Senator Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao
MANILA -- Senator Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao said on Thursday President Duterte's decision to fire Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Nicanor Faeldon over the erroneous release of heinous crime convicts highlighted that there are no sacred cows in the Chief Executive's administration.
In a statement, Pacquiao also urged other BuCor officials who had a hand in the early release of these high-profile prisoners, to either resign or take a leave-of-absence until congressional hearings on the controversial implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law are completed.
"This whole mess was not just about Undersecretary Faeldon. There are other BuCor officials who are directly and indirectly responsible for allowing the release of hardcore criminals which are not supposed to be covered by the GCTA Law,” Pacquiao said.
Pacquiao noted that the President’s recent move would refute claims that he is protecting Faeldon despite his “improprieties”, adding that the Chief Executive even ordered the Office of the Ombudsman to probe the matter deeper.
"This is the best testament that the president is equally enraged and disappointed with the actions of Faeldon and he is prepared to get into the bottom of this. This shows that Faeldon is no sacred cow," he said.
Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, meanwhile, said charges must be filed against Faeldon for his incompetence and for lying to evade accountability over the botched early release of convicted rapist-murder Antonio Sanchez.
"Faeldon was caught lying through his teeth. He tried to deceive the Senate and the public. He lied over and over again to evade accountability," Drilon said.
"His name has become synonymous with incompetence. His actions clearly exhibited gross inexcusable negligence and willful misconduct, if not corruption," Drilon added.
Drilon also expressed full support for the President's decision to fire Faeldon amid the controversy on the release of heinous crime convicts and the botched release of Sanchez, which was halted following strong public outcry.
"The President's decision confirmed what the public already knew: that Faeldon lied and weaved alibis under oath to exculpate himself," he said.
Faeldon headed the Bureau of Customs but was forced to resign at the height of the controversy involving the shipment of billions worth of shabu. He was reappointed to the Office of Civil Defense before heading the BuCor in 2018.
On the other hand, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said the BuCor has long been in need of cleansing and reforms, noting that the latest blunder over the release of criminals not covered by the GCTA is just a symptom of a much larger problem plaguing the bureau.
“And much like he did in the Bureau of Customs, Faeldon just made the problem worse instead of fixing it,” Gatchalian said.
Gatchalian said President Duterte should appoint someone who has no previous issues of corruption or incompetence as the next BuCor head.
“The first step towards reforming the BuCor is to appoint a strong and decisive leader who can reform the processes, the people, and the organization itself,” Gatchalian said.
“As for the Ombudsman's investigation, it should not focus solely on Faeldon, but rather, it should include all the people who had a hand in setting free to the unsuspecting public these rapists, killers, and drug lords,” he added. (PNA)
