By Ashley Manabat | Correspondent
ANGELES CITY—The ongoing Senate hearing on the Jack Lam case should include Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade, who was described as “the missing link” by the Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM).
PGKM pointed out Tugade was the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) president and CEO for more than two years, beginning with his appointment on December 18, 2012, until his resignation on April 26, 2016.
Tugade, now secretary of transportation, should be included in the Senate investigation, PGKM Chairman Ruperto Cruz said.
Cruz said Tugade should not feign innocence in the Lam case involving illegal online gaming, human trafficking and bribery at the Fontana Leisure Parks and Casino, because he was at the helm of CDC during Lam’s heyday.
There are even talks that one of Tugade’s children reportedly got married at Fontana, with Lam as one of the godfathers.
“He knows Clark more than anybody else, that is why he should be investigated to determine his liability, since he is the former CDC president and CEO, and Fontana is a locator in Clark,” Cruz pointed out.
“There was a rush of Chinese nationals in Clark [during Tugade’s watch], and he does he not know about it?” Cruz asked.
All foreigners who want to work in Clark and apply for permits pass through the CDC,” he said.
“The Senate investigation should not be closed, unless Tugade is investigated, otherwise everything is just for show and the real culprits will not be exposed and held liable,” he added.
Tugade should not be spared from this hearing, he said.
Cruz also said Lam should be considered as an “undesirable alien”, instead of allowing him to return and pay back taxes to the government, even if it runs in billions. “Economic sabotage should be punishable with capital punishment,” he added.
PGKM said the two immigration associate commissioners who figured in the multimillion-peso bribery scandal should not only be dismissed, but be placed behind bars and disbarred and their licenses to practice law revoked.
Meanwhile, Cruz said Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II’s five-month stint at the CDC legal department should also be uncovered thoroughly, so that no stone is left unturned in the investigation. “He [Aguirre] must know about Fontana’s illegal activities,” he said.
Cruz also said Dennis Uy, president of Converge ICT, the Internet provider of Fontana Leisure Parks and Casino, should also be included in the Senate investigation.