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The killing of Alvin Flores and three members of the gang that pulled off the Rolex store heist in Makati and the arrest of one of its members by the NBI Cebu-Manila team was a positive development in the fight against crime.
The Alvin Flores Gang had one of the most notorious records which think was was one of the reasons the NBI did not disclose earlier to the local police details of the raid, like the exact location and the targets, for fear the gang was well connected in Cebu and the raid might be jeopardized. Luckily, the raid went smoothly.
The entire nation, especially the people in Manila, where the gang was operating, is so happy with the development. The arrested robber has been ratting on his cohorts. Authorities have been granting brief media interviews of the detainee.
But some quarters in Cebu media feel the NBI held back vital post-operation information. Reporters and camera crew waited for nearly five hours after the shootout outside the gated beach house in Compostela, Cebu, where the incident took place.
Immediately after the operation, NBI operatives rushed out without leaving anyone to explain tothe media what had happened. Reporters had to be extra resourceful in getting information.
In Cebu Catholic Television Network (CCTN Channel 47), our reporter Flor Querubin, who also works for Superbalita, initially reported that there were no bullet holes in the scene and that the belongings inside the rented apartment were not in disarray. In other words, it didn’t look like a shootout scene.
No media person witnessed the the arrest of the lone surviving gang member. I guess the NBI agents showed the typical attitude of people in Manila who have little regard for people in the provinces. They didn’t let Cebu media interview the arrested gang member but they presented him to Manila journalists.
This again is a classic example of “Imperial Manila” arrogance. I don’t know how Cebu beat reporters take this development but I hope the NBI, in its next operation away from Manila, will provide local journalists the necessary information.
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The NBI’s arrest of former Compostela mayor Gilbert Wagas left a bad taste in the mouth. Our law enforcement agencies are so quick to arrest small fry in the battle against graft and corruption.
Wagas’ crime was malversation of public funds, amounting to nearly P 400,000. He was convicted by the Sandiganbayan and the conviction was affirmed by the Supreme Court. According to reports, the Sandiganbayan decision, as appealed before the Supreme Court, was final and executor, thus the arrest. Wagas is now at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa.
Why do I say the arrest left a bad taste in the mouth? Basically because the fight against graft and corruption has always been shortchanged. We rarely jail the ones who got the big dough.
Who is behind the purchase of the overpriced decorative ASEAN lampposts in Cebu? Millions of pesos were wasted but nobody was punished for it.
I think the Office of the Ombudsman central office has been a dismal failure in sending to jail big-time grafters, especially those who are close to the powers-that-be.
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What can you say about rumors that Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is planning to run for congressman in her home district in Pampanga or for vice president? It is everybody’s right to seek an elective position, but for a former president to do so, doesn’t it make her look like she’s obsessed with power?
The lives of former presidents Cory Aquino and Fidel Ramos can show Arroyo a thing or two about being a statesman or an elder counselor of Philippine affairs. But perhaps Arroyo is getting her cue from deposed president and plunder convict Joseph Estrada, who wants a presidential “take two.” Or perhaps she just doesn’t want to be powerless when her immunity from lawsuits expires next year.
Legally, I think she can run for lower office but that move really lacks delicadeza and shows that indeed she is hungry for power. She has been president for nearly 10 years already. Isn’t that enough?
