ICI stands on its own — Palace

The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) operates independently, even though it was created by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Malacañang stressed on Tuesday.

On its own, the Palace said, the ICI will decide when — or whether — to make its investigation public, amid growing calls by various sectors, including the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines and the Iglesia ni Cristo, for full transparency.

This came after the President reiterated his call for transparency and accountability in government, particularly in light of alleged corruption surrounding anomalous flood control projects.

“The President, in all circumstances, wants transparency. In all investigations, there should be transparency — nothing is hidden. But how the ICI will do this, how it can be made public, how it will be transparent, and to what extent, that is up to the ICI. But still, the President is promoting transparency in all investigations,” Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro said.

Castro said the ICI operates independently and is not obligated to submit progress reports to the Office of the President.

“We called the Office of the Executive Secretary [and] there is no such thing because this is an independent commission, and reporting is in the hands of the ICI; whatever their recommendations are, it will come from them and will not seek the President’s blessing,” she said.

Not only questions of its independence, but also its seeming “lack of powers” are some of the issues currently facing the ICI.

Member opting out?

House Senior Deputy Minority Leader Edgar Erice, on Monday, claimed that a member of the ICI was “losing hope” and looking to leave the body as the commission has “insufficient authority.”

On Tuesday, ICI executive director Brian Hosaka denied this, saying the commission remained intact and committed to carrying out its mandate to investigate corruption in flood control projects.

Meanwhile, Congress is seeking to give the ICI more powers to fulfill its mandate. It urged Malacañang to certify bills filed in the lower chamber as “urgent.”

Castro said the Palace will look into the proposals before the President decides on the measures.

“Maybe we should see more detailed information first to study it, and if it is necessary to issue a certificate for urgency,” Castro said.

She added the President will certify the filed bills as urgent if he sees the bills are appropriate.