By Mar Serrano
LEGAZPI CITY – Senator Cynthia Villar said on Monday the Senate
could also hold a parallel probe on the “parking pork” scam issue, which
involved billions of alleged funds insertion in the proposed 2019 budget.
Villar stressed, however, that the Senate would not want to preempt the
outcome of the investigation being initiated by the Lower House. “We still
don’t know and we are not part in the investigation so the Senate will have to
wait for the House probe result,” she said.
The Senate probe could come later, Villar noted. “Let the House
investigate on this, on how huge amount of funds were inserted allegedly by the
Department of Budget and Management (DBM).”
She said on the cue of Senator Panfilo Lacson, the Senate could conduct
a similar investigation as soon as it receives the result of the investigation
by the Lower House.
A probe by the upper chamber may be possibly set in January, Villar
added.
The senator was guest during the Awarding Ceremony for the Outstanding
Communal Vegetable Garden and Cleanest and Greenest Municipality at the Albay
Astrodome here.
She said in an ambush interview, “We don’t want to comment about this
issue, we leave this to the House of Congress for them to dig out how this
practice happened and who is involved.”
Lacson recently exposed the “parking pork” to media, a new kickback
scheme by lawmakers, where big amounts of funds are "parked" in a
legislative district by well-connected congressmen.
He said the Senate, once it holds a probe, would scrutinize the budget
of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and ask officials to
explain the alleged questionable budget insertions. (PNA)
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