Philippine Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide attends a special mass in honor of an outgoing colleague in Manila, 10 November 2003. AFP PHOTO/Jay DIRECTO

MANILA, Philippines (1st UPDATE) - Incoming President Benigno Aquino III announced Tuesday he would set up a "truth commission" to investigate the alleged crimes of outgoing leader Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and her allies.

He said the commission would look into a wide range of controversies surrounding Arroyo's nine-and-a-half years in power, including allegations she cheated to win the 2004 presidential election.

"This truth commission is the body that I promised the people I would set up to put a closure to so many issues," Aquino told reporters a day ahead of his inauguration.

“They will, as necessary, prepare and prosecute cases to make sure those who committed crimes against the people will be made to pay,” Aquino said.

Issues vs Arroyo

Arroyo, who is required by constitutional term limits to step down, will leave office as one of the nation's most unpopular leaders after being hounded by accusations of vote rigging and massive corruption.

She has consistently denied any wrongdoing and avoided three impeachment attempts against her, although this was due to her party's control of parliament.

Aquino, one of Arroyo's fiercest critics, said the truth commission would look into "any and all" controversies surrounding the departing president.

He specifically named three issues, the first being allegations she rigged the 2004 elections.

He said the commission would also look into a 329-million-dollar Internet broadband deal with a Chinese company that was eventually derailed following accusations Arroyo's allies had illegally profited from the planned contract.

He also said it would probe the alleged misuse by Arroyo's political allies of a 728-million-peso (15.68-million-dollar) government fertiliser fund.

Davide to head commission

Aquino emphasised that he wanted the commission to file criminal cases as soon as it had enough evidence, rather than engaging in lengthy studies.

He said retired Chief Justice Hilario Davide would head the commission.

"I want an independent commission that will be beyond criticism so their findings won't be manufactured results for political purposes, but based on solid evidence and facts," he said.

Aquino said Davide's mandate is similar to that of incoming Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who will be working alongside Davide in the "truth commission."

“Yung sa 'Hello, Garci' ba may nangyari ba? Yung sa fertilizer scam? Any and all issues, including extra-judicial killings,” Aquino said, when asked what the commission will cover.

He did not give the commission any deadlines, but said “let’s not wait for the completion, formulation or conclusions of all issues."

"Every time an issue has gotten to a stage that we’re ready to file the charges, then that should be filed,” Aquino said.

He expects the commission will be ready with its mechanisms or organizational rules in a month’s time.

Arroyo innocent: spokesman

Following the announcement, Arroyo's spokesman, Gary Olivar, repeated the president's position that she believed any inquiry would find her innocent.

"We are confident that this commission, provided it acts with due process and provides all the necessary protection to the people being investigated, will again exonerate the president," he told AFP.

He expressed confidence in the integrity of Davide, who he recalled had sworn Arroyo into office in 2001.

The creation of the truth commission is expected to be welcomed by different stakeholders who have asked for a clear-cut solution to the alleged crimes committed by officials of the Arroyo administration.

Some, however, questioned the appointment of Davide.

It was the Davide Supreme Court that affirmed the legitimacy of the Arroyo presidency in January 2001. He later administered Mrs. Arroyo's oath of office at EDSA during the second people power uprising.

But Aquino has apparently put his confidence in Davide, whom, he said, will not be a “procrastinator” in resolving the cases.

Who is Davide?

The late President Corazon Aquino appointed Davide as one of the 50 members of the Constitutional Commmission, which drafted the 1987 Constitution after the first people power uprising at EDSA. 

Mrs. Aquino also named Davide chairman of the Commission on Elections.

He was also appointed head of a presidential fact-finding commission that investigated the 1989 coup d'etat, which almost toppled the Aquino government. Davide, however, also covered previous failed coup attempts in his probe.

Davide's recommendations proved helpful in reducing the threat of military adventurism in the Ramos administration.

Mrs. Aquino appointed Davide to the Supreme Court, as one of its associate justices, in 1991. President Joseph Estrada appointed him chief justice in 1998.

President Arroyo named Davide the Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York after he retired from the Supreme Court in 2005.

Offered to Binay

Last week, Aquino had asked Vice-President Jejomar Binay to lead the commission.

Aquino said Binay's experience as a human rights lawyer under the Marcos regime made him a perfect fit for the new government body that he will form after June 30.

"Well, he is a lawyer and there are cases that we need to tackle and investigations to pursue that will bring closure...on all of the issues that are pending. He will be the one who will lead that," he earlier told reporters.

"I don't want to sound like a broken record but our conviction rate right now is very low, 18%. No big fish. The bigger the fish, the harder it is to even investigate. O, [hopefully] he [Binay] comes in and he manages to prove and send to jail those proven guilty," he added.

Binay was a member of the Movement of Attorneys for Brotherhood, Integrity and Nationalism Inc. (MABINI), a group of lawyers who helped human rights victims during the Marcos administration.

Binay rejects commission

But following the offer, Binay repeatedly said he would not accept any Cabinet post for now since it would only cause problems for the president-elect. He added that he wanted to work full-time as vice-president.

"Kahit isandaang beses pa, sasabihin ko sa inyo, gusto ko na lang manungkulan. Huwag na natin pahirapan ang pangulo sa paghahanap ng pwesto ko," he said.

He also clarified that his refusal to handle the commission that would investigate Arroyo does not mean that he is afraid of the outgoing president.

He said the position was one of 4 offered to him by President-elect Aquino, all of which he refused.

Jail corrupt officials

Meanwhile, a leading campaigner urged the Philippines to jail corrupt officials and seize their assets to show it is serious about taking on the endemic corruption that has hobbled its development and investment,
 
Transparency International's co-founder Michael Hershman said Aquino should set up an independent anti-corruption body that would run after corrupt officials.

"There is a need to go after those who have robbed and stolen from this country," the former soldier said, pointing to studies showing 20% of the government's budget is lost to corruption.
 
"They must be held accountable, and this time it has to be done for real. They must go to jail if found guilty of corruption and their assets must be seized and returned to the public treasury," he added during a Makati Business Club forum on Friday.

Transparency and Accountability Network (TAN), a local non-government organization, had also urged Aquino to establish an independent commission that will pursue corruption cases.

RP ranks 139th in index

The Philippines is ranked 139th out of 180 countries on Transparency International's corruption perception index, 28 places behind Indonesia and the lowest of the major Southeast Asian nations.
 
Concerns about endemic corruption and weak institutions have seen foreign investment in the Philippines lag its neighbours.
 
Aquino's clean image and the trust Filipinos have in his family's name was a factor in his big win in the May election, with the public looking for change after two administrations beset by allegations of corruption.

Aquino rode to a landslide win in the May 10 national elections partly on a promise to fight political corruption that he said thrived under Arroyo's reign.

Despite low popularity ratings nationwide, Arroyo won a seat in the lower house of parliament representing her home town.

Her critics have said she took the unprecedented step for a sitting president to run for a parliamentary seat partly as a political shield against any corruption probe.

Arroyo would not have immunity against prosecution, but she could use her position in Congress to rally her allies to support her in any probe, analysts said.

Aquino made the announcement about the truth commission as he unveiled his new Cabinet.- with reports Agence France-Presse; ABS-CBN News; Manny Mogato, Reuters