Duterte vows crackdown vs. corrupt PhilHealth execs

President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday he would be tough against officials of Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) who would be found stealing funds supposed to be for the people’s health insurance program. "Itong PhilHealth, sabi ko yayariin ko kayong lahat, maniwala kayo. Iyong mga inosente naman, wala kayong dapat i-ano, tahimik lang kayo at continue working,” he said in a televised briefing from Presidential Guest House in Panacan, Davao City. “Ngayon ito, nakalusot kayo sa ibang maybe presidente o ano pero dito sa akin, sadsad talaga kayo . . . ,” Duterte added. Several officials of the state health insurer, led by its president, Ricardo Morales, are embroiled in corruption allegations after witnesses surfaced detailing the purported misuse of funds, overpricing of projects, questionable implementation of the Interim Reimbursement Mechanism and manipulated financial statements that have put the agency’s fund life on shaky ground. A whistleblower had also claimed that a mafia within PhilHealth was able to pocket P15 billion. The Senate has started an investigation of the anomalies. Duterte had said he will not fire Morales unless there is proof the retired military general is involved in corruption. Senator Panfilo Lacson, one of the senators who exposed the alleged wrongdoing, said Duterte should go through the transcript of the almost 10-hour Senate hearing on the alleged irregularities in PhilHealth to get the "whiff of corruption" he requires to axe erring government officials. Last Friday, Duterte ordered the creation of an inter-agency task force to probe the PhilHealth executives. The task force is composed of the Department of Justice, Office of the Ombudsman, Commission on Audit, Civil Service Commission, Office of the Executive Secretary, Undersecretary Jesus Melchor Quitain of the Office of the Special Assistant to the President and the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission. Just as the Senate gears up for its next hearing, Morales on Monday said he is seeking medical leave due to an illness. Senate President Vicente Sotto III said government officials with serious illnesses should instead relinquish their posts, especially if their mandate is being compromised.—LDF, GMA News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more