MIRIAM SEEKS PROBE OF ENRILE "CRIMES," URGES PUBLIC DEBATE

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, in an explosive privilege speech, urged justice secretary Leila de Lima to order an NBI investigation into alleged crimes committed by Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, mostly during martial law when he was the powerful defense secretary.

Santiago left her sickbed once more to answer a prior privilege speech by Enrile, which turned out to be a rehash of campaign issues raised against Santiago when she ran for president in 1992, or more than 20 years ago.

Santiago called for criminal prosecution of Enrile for the following crimes under the Penal Code: command responsibility for death and disappearance during martial law of some 4,000 people; mastermind of the biggest plunder case in Philippine history, having received from 2005 to 2013 pork barrel of P1.189 billion, of which P641.65 million went to dummy corporations of Janet Napoles;

Running a smuggling empire in the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, for which Enrile insisted on an appropriation in the 2014 budget of P80 million; running a gambling empire in CEZA by promoting so-called "interactive gaming" and claiming that the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) has no jurisdiction over Cagayan's Port Irene;

Running an illegal logging empire during martial law, when he obtained from Pres. Ferdinand Marcos the largest logging concession covering 95,770 hectares, which was guarded by the so-called "Lost Command" who were allegedly responsible for the massacre of 45 people;

Psychopathic adultery and concubinage, being what Santiago called a "hypersexualized serial womanizer," for which his wife left him in 1998, and in her absence breaking up the marriage of his chief of staff, Gigi Reyes, for whom he threw a "decadent" birthday party at a Makati five-star hotel;'

Tax evasion, having specialized in tax law for his master's degree, and declaring only P118 million in his 2012 SALN, "belying his wanton lifestyle, including corrupt minions and a private army in his payroll," to use Santiago's words.

Santiago said that Enrile was "smarting" because during her televised interpellation of Napoles at the latest hearing of the Blue Ribbon Committee, Santiago showed that Enrile and not Napoles is the real mastermind behind the plunder case.

Turning the tables on Enrile, Santiago said Enrile needs to see a "shrink" for psychiatric treatment because "his mind is sick, sick, sick." She belied all of his accusations against her character, but briefly explained that Enrile resurrected the 20-year-old campaign issues which were part of black propaganda which she already answered during the 1992 presidential campaign.

One interesting sidelight was Santiago's claim that Enrile as former customs commissioner tried to pressure her husband, former customs collector Narciso Yap Santiago, to release a Toyota car smuggled and forfeited by the bureau of customs for failure to pay customs duties. Santiago said at that time, she owned a Mercedes and Narciso owned a Ford Mustang sportscar, so the Toyota car was a "non-issue."

During a spat over the 2012 Christmas bonus to every senator at nearly P2 million each, for which Enrile excluded Santiago and three other senators who are his enemies, Santiago challenged Enrile to a public debate on what she called "grave abuse of discretion" of the senate president's discretionary funds.

Enrile did not accept Santiago's challenge to a debate, but instead called on Sen. Panfilo Lacson to attack Santiago, causing Santiago to call him "Enrile's attack dog."

Santiago revealed it was Lacson who gave her a dossier on then DILG Sec. Ronaldo Puno, whom Lacson wanted to replace. Santiago exposed the Puno scheme to order mandatory drug testing for all PNP personnel, but only at an exclusive laboratory, which turned out to be a cheap, dilapidated apartment. While Santiago and Puno fought bitterly over the issue, Lacson flew to Hongkong and hid there, until the fight died down. Santiago in her speech called Lacson "cunning and scheming."

In her recent speech, Santiago issued a second challenge to Enrile to a public televised debate on the plunder charge filed against him, now pending with the Ombudsman.