FOR Blue Ribbon committee chairman T.J. Guingona to salvage a measure of credibility … the inquiry into the Malampaya Fund scam is necessary. If public and not party interest is to be served, the misuse of the fund generated from government royalties out of the lucrative natural gas project … should have had priority similar to the investigation into the Priority Development Assistance Fund ... anomaly.

…[I]f the Senate really wants to go deep into the root of corrupt practices in government, the investigation should be pursued to its conclusion and not halted midway to selectively condemn chosen personalities. Suspicions abound that the Malampaya Fund’s misuse will involve key personalities of the administration of [President] Noynoy which may reach all the way to the doors of Noynoy at Malacañang, which is the reason for the foot dragging of Guingona in holding a probe on it. In one of the Senate hearings, economic officials of Noynoy admitted that the collections from the Malampaya royalties that reached P130 billion was being used as a general fund and juggled at will. ... — (May 5)

Opinion

Trouble at home

Trouble at home

The country’s strength lies in its political and economic stability, not in fleeting moments of diplomatic success.

Editorial

Pezeshkian’s visit
Updated 24 Jun, 2026

Pezeshkian’s visit

Perhaps a good place to start would be the resumption of work on the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline.
Telecom bill
24 Jun, 2026

Telecom bill

THERE is now no question about it: the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) (Amendment) Bill of 2026 is a...
Updating Islamabad
24 Jun, 2026

Updating Islamabad

ISLAMABAD is growing rapidly. Its planning, however, remains stuck in bureaucratic limbo. Despite years of ...
Unsustainable growth
Updated 23 Jun, 2026

Unsustainable growth

CLICHÉS are an essential part of political rhetoric. But when repeated often, they lose their impact. So when...
Banned speeches
23 Jun, 2026

Banned speeches

NATIONAL Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq on Sunday formally lifted long-standing restrictions on the airing of ...
New GB government
23 Jun, 2026

New GB government

WITH the newly elected lawmakers of the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly taking oath on Monday, the PPP looks set to head...