Fair is fair
“Since government officials are not exempt from taking responsibility for their acts as public servants, neither should their accusers be free from accountability, which is the concept of a level playing field.
“The DoE wanted those behind the obvious propaganda campaign to demolish the business milestone — which was the $1-billion acquisition of the Udenna Group of the Chevron and Shell Philippines Exploration Corp. shares in the Malampaya consortium to have some form of accountability since they chose to ignore rationality in their demolition campaign.
Similar to President Rodrigo Duterte’s pursuit for fair play in the charges leveled at him regarding the alleged overpriced medical supplies, Department of Energy (DoE) officials are appealing that government functionaries be allowed to exercise their mandate.
President Rodrigo Duterte had lashed at the Senate for hauling Cabinet officials to the Chamber but to languish for hours listening to monologues and endless flogging from the supposed probers while taking them away from their vital functions particularly in the battle against the effects of the pandemic.
Similarly, the DoE wanted those behind the obvious propaganda campaign to demolish the business milestone — which was the $1-billion acquisition of the Udenna Group of the Chevron and Shell Philippines Exploration Corp. shares in the Malampaya consortium — to have some form of accountability since they chose to ignore rationality in their demolition campaign.
A trio of Filipino agitators residing in the United States led by billionaire Loida Nicolas Lewis, who is closely identified with the Liberal Party, filed charges against Cusi and several others including officials of the Udenna group and the DoE.
The complaint was meant to put under a cloud of doubt the actions of the DoE and Cusi in the assessment of the deals with the aim of having a new auction for Service Contract 38 when it expires in 2024.
It turns out the Udenna Group had outbid the largest business interests that have long dominated the Philippine business when Shell and Chevron decided to unload their stakes in the project.
The jilted groups are now mounting an expensive effort to snatch control of the Malampaya field, which is also the stepping stone to the resource-rich West Philippine Sea.
In time, the DoE wanted those responsible for the brazen lies to account for damaging reputations and good standing of government officials, which were carefully developed through years of hard work and effort.
Instead of proceeding with their work unencumbered, energy officials had to contend with the unsubstantiated allegations coming from several sides, all of which are directed at stopping the deal from being perfected.
At the Senate, Blue Ribbon chairperson Sherwin Gatchalian called the deal between Udenna unit UC Malampaya and Chevron Corp. worth $565 million, a “lutong makaw” despite the ongoing inquiry.
This was followed by similar accusations from elitist groups such as the Makati Business Club and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, which in unison, demanded that the DoE call off the deal.
The fact, however, is that the private transaction is beyond the ambit of the government and that the DoE can only go as far as reviewing the technical and financial capability of those involved in the sale of shares which are meticulous assessments that would have been surely done by the private companies during their due diligence.
Cusi raised the likelihood of malice in the orchestrated attempt to question the transactions. Earlier, the Energy chief linked the attacks on him regarding the Malampaya deals to his being the head of President Rodrigo Duterte’s party Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP), and the coming presidential polls. According to Cusi, who became the butt of the deceptive claims from the opportunist groups primarily from the Filipino-American rumor mongers, the imputations of graft, gross negligence, and other wrongdoings were false.
Since government officials are not exempt from taking responsibility for their acts as public servants, neither should their accusers be free from accountability, which is the concept of a level playing field.