SENATE President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s edits in its flood control probe report were meant to clarify procedure—not to soften the findings—after questions were raised about a supposed “compromise” in the draft.
In a DZBB radio interview, Lacson said the change involved replacing a broad phrase that could be misunderstood by the public. “Pinalitan ang lingwahe pero wala naman na bago sa intent o substance,” he said, explaining that the earlier wording described respondents as “to be charged” or “recommended to file charges,” which he said could wrongly sound like the committee
was already bringing cases to court which is not the case.
Lacson said the committee instead used a more specific recommendation: “recommended to undergo preliminary investigation (PI),” stressing that the Senate and the Blue Ribbon Committee have no mandate to file cases in court. “After all sabi ko nga hindi pwede magsampa ng kaso sa korte ang Blue Ribbon Committee o ang Senado,” he said, adding that filing and prosecution functions fall under the Department of Justice and the Office of the Ombudsman.
He also addressed questions about whether the revision was political, insisting the adjustment did not change what the report was pointing to. “Maski may kompromiso sa paggamit ng lingwahe, hindi naman na-compromise ang sustansya,” Lacson said.
Lacson laid out the range of possible recommendations the committee can make, including preliminary investigation, case build-up at the DOJ, or fact-finding at the Ombudsman, noting that not all fact-finding or case build-up efforts necessarily reach preliminary investigation if evidence falls short of establishing probable cause.
He also said the draft carried recommendations such as having the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) conduct “tracking ng movement ng accounts,” as part of efforts to follow money trails connected to the allegations discussed in the inquiry.
Lacson said the final draft was completed after the Senate session the night before the interview and was expected to be circulated to colleagues, with the report to be filed once it gathers enough signatures for inclusion in the Senate’s Order of Business. “Kagabi pa lang natapos after noong session ang final draft. So today na-expect namin i-roll out yan sa aking mga kasamahan,” he said, adding he was confident of getting at least 11 signatures.
He cautioned against equating an investigation’s findings with a prosecutor’s case, noting that prosecutors evaluate evidence under rules and thresholds for filing information in court, and that the committee’s role remains fact-gathering and recommendation-making based on its records and hearings.
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