HAS the current national crisis really become so malignant it has turned provincemates into enemies?

Congressman and ousted House Speaker Jose C. de Venecia and Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group (PASG) head Usec. Antonio A. Villar, Jr. , Pangasinenses both, appear to be the latest pair of protagonists ‘infected’ by the unraveling national bitter drama sparked by the National Broadband Network-STE deal.

In a press conference with local mediamen Saturday on his way to inaugurate several municipal projects in the fourth district, De Venecia issued another one of his calibrated response at what he said were Malacanang’s “desperate” moves to divert the issue from the NBN-ZTE bribery scandal to his alleged link to some oil smugglers.

]At first seemingly hesitant to directly attack Villar, his provincemate and claimed political friend, de Venecia finally said that he thought the PASG head, knowing his principles, would be able to resist being “used” by President Arroyo and her allies to get back at him (De venecia) for his running feud with Malacanang.

“I thought he was macho,” the former Speaker said of Villar, adding that maybe the pressure on Villar was too much he had to implicate him to an alleged compromise De Venecia was brokering for Oillink, a company accused by PASG for technical oil smuggling.

In a press conference late last week in Malacanang, Villar said De Venecia had approached President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo about the case of Oilink International Corp., which, the PASG said, had undervalued its oil imports last year to lower the duties it would pay the government.

The President reportedly referred De Venecia to Villar as he was the one pursuing the case against the oil importer, resulting in the former Speaker inviting Vilar to his house in Forbes Park, Makati for a breakfast meeting to discuss the case.

Oilink owner Paul Co, was reportedlypresent in the meeting. According to Villar, Co arrived at the meeting in shorts and he did not know him until he was introduced by De Venecia

“The former speaker told me that he talked to [Finance Sec. Margarito B.] Teves. He said Teves was amenable to a compromise,” Villar narrated.

Villar said that under the compromise, Oilink would pay P500 million and the Bureau of Customs would no longer file tax fraud cases against it. The PASG head said De Venecia showed him a letter from the Bureau of Customs that it had accepted the compromise

“I told him, I have to file a case… We will gain more revenues if the court finds the company guilty of fraud,” Villar said, noting that the government would gain as much as P4 billion if it wins the case.

The firm supposedly undervalued or did not honestly declare the quantity of oil it shipped in on board the m/t Port Louis last year.

The PASG’s revelation came after De Venecia’s wife, Georgina, said a “midnight cabinet” composed of influential businessmen were dictating the policies that the government should adopt.

Villar however clarified that his revelation was not meant to get back at De Venecia.