PRESIDENT Aquino has ordered Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima to review the conduct of the investigation being carried out by the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) board on questionable transactions of its predecessors, following the apparent suicide of one of the officers being probed.

Mr. Aquino said in an ambush interview at the Palace Heroes’ Hall that he will “rein in” the DBP board if it is proven to be “overzealous” in conducting the investigation, and that he wants to know the circumstances that led to the death of lawyer Benjamin Pinpin, an assistant vice president at the DBP.

“If they have been overzealous, we will rein them in…. I will task Cesar Purisima this afternoon to review whether they have been too overzealous,” he said.

But the President indicated that it may also turn out that the “zealousness of the board is to get a handle as soon as possible on what has transpired.”

“The endpoint is that they have a responsibility to keep that bank strong. That’s conflicting in a sense—you have to protect the rights of each individual but there’s a need also to know everything as soon as possible to prevent any damage, any further damage from happening,” he said.

The President cited the “zealousness” of the current board of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. in averting a questionable deal involving P21 million worth of hamburger and chicken orders from a fast-food chain, just a week into his administration.

Asked for his message to DBP employees reportedly demoralized by the conduct of the probe, which has been likened to a “fishing expedition,” and the death of Pinpin, Mr. Aquino said his administration “is not out to persecute anyone” but only wants to know “what damage the institution suffered” to improve its condition.

The President appealed to them to “cooperate” with the DBP board in the latter’s bid to put the institution “in order.”

“If the board is doing the right thing, is headed for the right direction, let us help them,” the President said.

He said any problems arising from behest loans allegedly approved by the DBP under the previous administration would affect especially rank-and-file employees who stand to lose their jobs if the DBP does not perform well.

The President also expressed his condolences to Pinpin’s family and gave his assurance that “we will look into how it reached this point.”

Mr. Aquino said Purisima gave him an initial report on Tuesday night, a backgrounder on “allegations of behest loans or questionable practices that were done previously” but not on the alleged overzealousness of the DBP board in its investigation.

“I understand that the guy who committed suicide was one of the lead witnesses who actually unearthed this. He was kind of vital. I’m curious like everybody else as to why he had taken his life,” he said.

He said that he’s “anticipating the report of Secretary Purisima to further clarify what the process is, etc., in unearthing what has happened in DBP in the previous board.”

Pinpin, 43, was found dead in a Las Piñas hotel on Tuesday, but was said to have been missing from work since Monday. His co-workers describe him as “very good-natured, reticent and bright.”