No amount of Malacañang propaganda can cover the undeniable fact that a great majority of our people believe the Aquino administration has miserably failed in its promise to rid government of corruption. Two-thirds or 67 percent of the respondents in a recent Pulse Asia survey said that the misuse of government funds continues under the Aquino presidency, affirming public perceptions that officials allied with the administration are being excluded from investigations involving corrupt practices.
If President Aquino is really sincere in his drive against corruption, he should let heads roll no matter what political party they belong to. Take the plunder charge filed against three opposition senators in connection with the P10-billion pork barrel scam. It’s worth noting that other senators allied with the administration were spared despite their clear, irrefutable links to Janet Lim-Napoles.
Unless and until everyone is made accountable, the pork barrel investigation would be nothing in the eyes of the public but a mere witchhunt targeting only the enemies of the administration—far from the genuine step toward reform that Malacañang would like the public to believe.
—CAMILLE GUTIERREZ,
gutierrez.camille@gmail.com