A rocambolesque story.
It’s a modern story that would have aptly, succinctly portrayed what has been dubbed as an unprecedented account of corruption in the Philippines.
In English, rocambolesque means extravavagant, fantastic, incredible, fabulous. Any adjective would have fit the extraordinary sad, shameful narrative to a T.
The French , and the rest of the French speaking world, would have said oui. -The late President Cory Aquino, who read and spoke fluent French but didn’t flaunt it even at the constant prodding, begging of Press Secretary Teddy Benigno would have said the same thing. Or she could have said alternatively wa – oua, if you will, which means the same thing. She also understood Kapampangan , although it’s doubtful if she was as fluent.
But it’s not about the Philippine corruption story, although it’s equally evil. In an imperfect or sinful word, chances are even, although theologians say, the ground at Calvary was level. Here, you would expect Sen. Joel Villanueva to agree, notwithstanding the allegations that he may be implicated in the scandal involving public works projects, vis-à-vis his faith profession and therefore denial,which ever comes first.
In the latest incident,the thieves, per report,presumably French masked as construction workers ,completed the instant heist in less than 10 minutes, using modern tools and transport system.Stolen were inestimable values of jewels that go back to the French Emperor Napoleon I and his wife Empress Eugenie.
Legend has it that a thief known as rocambole who emerged from a 19th century adventure series repeatedly outwitted authorities and ran away with his loot.
The same wiliness ,meanwhile, characterized a nagging rot across the ocean, in the Philippine government. Those suspected of being deeply involved in massive corruption masqueraded themselves as legislators of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, government engineers implementing public works and business cum financiers.
It took years before no less President Bongbong Marcos found out about it. It helped greatly that Nature or Heaven, mainly flood one after the other, exposed it for the nation and the world to hear and know about it. As it happened, some legislators and their accomplices were recidivists.
While the extent of the thievery in France has been stopped and assessed, the Philippine scandalous issue is not yet closed. In the first place, no one has been jailed yet. Due process has it’s own downside, lawyers and legalese argue.
Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon says he’s not yet through with the investigation and more could be uncovered. Many say the onus of the job job has affected Dizon is more ways than one. Not that he has a troubled and uneasy conscience as the 19th French author Victor Hugo would have commented the same way he wrote in Les Miserables. For Dizon, aggravations come from without , not from within.
In the Senate, Sen. J.V, Ejercito, the good one, couldn’t fail but notice that Dizon has lost his poster boy image as a private sector executive, Ejercito knew whereof he spoke as private sector leader once. Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, who claims affinity with the Cabinet official as fellow Kapampangan is as sympathetic if not more, notwithstanding his controversial stand and the low opinion by a former Supreme Court justice about his being a legal luminary.
The robbery at the Louvre museum has blown the French la vie en rose to smitheeren, according to pundits, The worldwide humiliation from the heist has most especially hurt the French politicians and their brand of politics. Some say that something has to give sooner than later.
The same thing has thrown Philippine politics into chaos. Life, or bie as Kapampangans call it, is never the same again. The Speaker of the House and Senate President have quit. One congressman is o n the lam. More are expected to be charged by INVESTIGATIONS in pursuit of potential rocamboles.
In particular, the special commission created by the President is expected to haul in like a rock net those involved in infrastructure scams involving billions of pesos in ghost projects, substandard works and even questionable lifestyles.
Plunder charges have been filed by former senator Antonio Trillanes against Sen. Bong Go, who used to enjoy a squeak clean Mr. Clean image ,and former President Duterte over infra deals given to the Go families from the time Duterte was Davao City mayor until he became the highest official of the land.
The former president is at the Hague where he’s awaiting trial for corruption of another genre, crime against humanity, by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC has denied his request for interim release filed by his foreign lawyers.
The vice president, his daughter, has long feared that the corruption probe will eventually reached their families. She and her two brothers who are in government are candidates for infra deals in their home province and city. It can only be just a matter of time.
The impeachment case against Sara Duterte has been delayed pending the issuance by the Highest Court of a new and final ruling. The first one gave the vice president and her allies, including the majority backed Duterte senators a chance to celebrate. Legal groups have since accused the ponente of the SC ruling affirmed by the majority that a factual error was committed in the ruling.
The vice president and her allies hope that the final ruling will absolve her of accountability in the alleged misused of confidential and intelligence funds as the President’s spare tire and as an alter ego in the department of education.
Both the French museum robbery and the Philippine multi-facet probes into the infrastructure corruption are a race against time. Let’s see who get to the finish line first and say, voila, the rocamboles are here.
