This developed as Malacañang yesterday gave the green light to Cabinet secretaries, who have been invited to appear, to attend tomorrow’s Senate blue ribbon committee’s hearing on the controversial NBN deal with China’s ZTE before issuing the committee report on the issue.

Lawyer Ruy Rondain, who is legal counsel of the First Gentleman, said that since the invitation for the First Gentleman is not a subpoena there is no more need for him to show up at the hearing since he had already made his testimonies on the controversy and executed the appropriate affidavits.

Rondain also said that the First Gentleman is unfazed with reports that former House Speaker Jose De Venecia, and his son Joey III, including Jun Lozada were invited to the hearing.

He brushed aside their protestations as part of political posturing especially that the younger De Venecia and Lozada have indicated their political ambitions for the 2010 elections.

Rondain also belied that the First Gentleman ever remarked "back off" in one meeting in 2007 with the young De Venecia.

For his part, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said that Malacañang will allow the Cabinet secretaries to attend the hearing based on the established rules and regulations in inviting members of the Cabinet in congressional inquiries as promulgated by the Supreme Court in the case of Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita on executive privilege.

On the invitation to the First Gentleman, Remonde tossed the issue to the former’s legal counsel.

It will be recalled that Mr. Arroyo and several members of the Cabinet have been invited to appear tomorrow at the Senate blue ribbon committee’s hearing on the NBN deal.

Blue ribbon committee chair Sen. Richard Gordon said Mike Arroyo should state once and for all the role he played in the controversy.

Others invited to the hearing are De Venecia III, Romulo Neri, Rodolfo Lozada Jr., Michael Defensor, Deputy Executive Secretary Manuel Gaite, Finance Secretary Margarito Teves and Transportation Secretary Leandro Mendoza.

Neri has informed Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile that he could not honor Senate’s invitation because of the charges to be filed against him by the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman indicted Neri and Abalos, but cleared the First Gentleman and President Arroyo even as it recommended Neri’s suspension.

Gordon said the hearing would allow the joint committee to "complete the story" and "allow those responsible to explain just in case there are doubts."

Pimentel says Neri has no one to blame

As this developed, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. yesterday said former National Economic and Development Authority director general Romulo Neri should stop grumbling over the Ombudsman’s decision to file a graft complaint against him with the Sandiganbayan arising from his involvement in the fraudulent $329-million NBN-ZTE deal.

Neri, who was reassigned as president of the Social Security System after the NBN-ZTE scandal broke out, asked why he was being charged when he refused a P200 million bribe allegedly dangled to him in exchange for a favorable evaluation and endorsement of the project.

But Pimentel said Neri has only himself to blame for his misfortune. He said while it was Neri who revealed the bribe attempt and reported it to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he refused to divulge details of his conversation with the President.

"He had a lengthy discussion with the President about the bribery and the project itself. But he did not want to reveal exactly what they discussed. The implication is that he was covering up a crime," the opposition senator said.

Pimentel said what the Senate wanted to know from Neri was why the President went ahead with the approval of the NBN-ZTE deal despite the allegations of bribery, overpricing and other irregularities.

He recalled that Neri opted to keep silent by invoking executive privilege and even went to the Supreme Court to prevent the Senate from forcing him to tell everything he knew.

Only Neri and former Commission on Elections chairman Benjamin Abalos, who allegedly offered him the P200 million bribe, were recommended for prosecution by the Ombudsman with the Sandiganbayan.

Despite the criticisms over the exclusion of the First Couple and other personalities from the charge sheet, Pimentel said the Ombudsman, by releasing its findings and recommendations, has at least set in motion the prosecution of people responsible for the anomalies that tainted the NBN-ZTE contract.

He said the Ombudsman can still include the prosecution of other persons depending on the additional evidence that will be gathered, specially after the Senate blue ribbon committee releases its own investigation report on the controversial project.

For instance, Pimentel noted, some members of the committee believe that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo should be similarly charged for their alleged role in the overpriced project.

However, he said even if there is credible evidence that points to the criminal liability of the President, she could not be prosecuted because she enjoys immunity from suit.

"Conventional legal wisdom tells us that the President cannot be prosecuted while she is in office. Of course, that concept is being challenged even in the United States. But here in the Philippines, that concept continues to prevail based on the theory that the President should not be distracted from her official duties," the senator from Mindanao said.

Pimentel pointed out, however, that there is nothing in the Constitution that states that the President should be spared from prosecution after the expiration of her term for offenses he or she may have committed while in power.

He said this is the only plausible explanation why Malacañang has moved heaven and earth to push for Charter-change to enable Mrs. Arroyo to extend her six-year term that is fixed by the Constitution.

Pimentel stressed that the filing by the Ombudsman of graft charges against Abalos and Neri with the Sandiganbayan does not in anyway mean that the Ombudsman is precluded from asking the court to add more names to the list of the accused.

He said that while it may look awkward that the investigation report of the Senate blue ribbon committee would be released after the Ombudsman acted on the case, such report would still be very valuable because this will strengthen the evidence against the erring parties.

Moreover, the minority leader explained that the inquiry conducted by the Senate is essentially aimed at proposing legislative measures to prevent misuse of public funds.

President, Ombudsman’s decision dropping charges vs First Couple criticized

Meanwhile, a senior leader of the House of Representatives’ opposition bloc yesterday said there is no good reason for Malacañang to celebrate the decision of the Ombudsman dropping the graft charges against President Arroyo and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo over the botched $329-million NBN-ZTE deal.

House senior Deputy Minority Leader and Citizens Battle Against Corruption party-list Rep. Joel Villanueva lamented Malacañang’s seeming jubilation when the fact remains that two of President Arroyo’s allies, former Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Benjamin Abalos and ex-Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri were ordered prosecuted.

"Imbes malungkot at napatunayan na mga anak (Abalos at Neri) niya (Pangulong Arroyo) sa gobyerno ang napatunayang sangkot, natuwa pa at nakaisa na naman sa bayan dahil silang mag-asawa nakatakas na naman," said Villanueva.

In a related development, Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares also scored the supposed Ombudsman’s extremely illogical findings and conclusions.

"Bayan Muna believes that justice will not be served under this administration. Unfortunately for the Arroyo Administration, like all dances, the music must end somehow," said Colmenares.

Lapus also said that the ongoing impeachment proceeding against Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez has no connection whatsoever to the exoneration of the President and the First Gentleman from the NBN-ZTE deal.

"If we find the evidence damning, we will impeach her. Congress will act based on the merits of the impeachment case against the Ombudsman and not on the exoneration of the President and the First Gentleman," said Lapus.

Source: Peoples Tonight by Efren Montano With reports from Marlon Purificacion, Ryan Ponce Pacpaco