The quality of justice
As Filipinos, we ought to be nationally embarrassed that we have to depend on the US justice system to do the job our own judicial system should have done. It happened before with some of the Marcos cases. It is happening again now with the Napoles case.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra confirmed that Janet Lim Napoles, her children Jo Christine, James Christopher, and Jeane Catherine; her brother Reynaldo and his wife Ana Marie, have been indicted by a federal grand jury for conspiracy to commit money laundering, domestic money laundering, and international money laundering.
Money laundering is a crime not just in the United States, but also in the Philippines. But have we heard of any move by our judicial authorities to go after the Napoleses for money laundering? Of course not!
According to the US Department of Justice, the Napoleses, around 20 lawmakers and other government officials, had “converted to their own benefit millions of dollars in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and transmitted approximately $20 million from that scheme into the US to purchase assets, including real property and luxury vehicles.”
Additionally, the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, said in a statement that the funds were diverted to money remitters in the Philippines and then wired to Southern California bank accounts, “where the money was used to purchase real estate, shares in two businesses, two Porsche Boxsters and finance the living expenses of three family members residing in the United States: Jeane Napoles, Reynald Lim, and Ana Lim.”
It will be recalled that instead of going after the Napoleses, a former justice secretary even took Mrs. Napoles under his wings through the witness protection program.
The Solicitor General also defended Mrs. Napoles in a case before the Court of Appeals that eventually exonerated her from kidnapping charges a lower court found her guilty of.
Decency returned to our Department of Justice when the new Secretary, Menardo Guevarra, reversed the decision of his predecessor to put Mrs. Napoles under the witness protection program. Secretary Guevarra also said they are collaborating with the US Department of Justice on the money laundering charges against Napoles.
“We welcome this development, as it paves the way for the return of the people’s money to our national treasury,” Guevarra told reporters.
US justice officials said in a statement Napoles and her family members attempted to quietly liquidate their assets in the US and secretly repatriate most of the resulting funds back to the Philippines and to other accounts in the US and United Kingdom, and disburse some of the funds to Jeane Napoles, who used the money to finance her lifestyle and open a fashion business.