Detained Senator Leila de Lima said she hopes that the next chairperson of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee would be equally relentless and aggressive in investigating anomalies and corruption in government.
“I hope that the next Blue Ribbon Chair is as aggressive and relentless as its last Chair has shown, given the sensitive mandate of the Committee to be the vanguard of the Senate against corruption in government,” De Lima said in a statement.
De Lima pointed out Senator Richard Gordon was fearless in pursuing a Senate investigation into the questionable Covid-19 supplies deal entered into by the government with the Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp.
The senator said the Blue Ribbon Committee ,led by Gordon, “burned the midnight oil for weeks” to ensure that all culpable parties in the anomalous multi-billion peso heist would not go scot free.
“Unfortunately, despite the efforts of the Committee and its Chair, it appears that Duterte still had favors to collect even as his term ends, and so was able to frustrate the release of the (Senate blue ribbon) Committee Report,” she lamented.
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri, who is poised to be the next Senate president in the 19th Congress, had earlier disclosed that the Senate blue ribbon panel was offered to Sen. Francis Tolentino, a known ally of outgoing President Duterte.
De Lima said she is vouching on Sen. Risa Hontiveros’ plan to revive the Pharmally inquiry in the next Congress, saying she hopes it would bear fruit and that the next chair of the blue ribbon panel will be relentles in fighting corruption.
“It will surely be a test for the incoming (Marcos) administration, insofar, as its promise to fight corruption and jail corrupt officials is concerned, no matter how high up they are in the totem pole of government,” she said.