PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday, October 20, slammed lawmakers who threatened to cut down the budget of government agencies with officials refusing to participate in the ongoing Senate probe into irregularities in the use of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic funds.
“You threaten the budget of different agencies of the Executive because the officials refuse to attend to your hearings. Ito 'yung mga pang-abuso talaga itong masabi ko sa gobyerno 'pag ka demokrasya, itong separation of powers, co-equal and everything; and they threatened to paralyze government. I challenge you, do it. 'Pag ka 'yung mga hearing reduce the budget by one third, hinahamon ko kayo, gawain ninyo 'yan,” Duterte said during his Talk to the People Address.
“Tingnan mo, subukan mo. Reduce it by one third, I challenge you. Huwag kang magtakot, gawin mo. O i-zero budget mo ang Office of the President. Sige nga, gawain mo daw. Bakit? Aabot ba 'yang pera ninyo kung hindi magdaan sa akin? Eh kung hindi ako mag-release? Akala ninyo kayo lang ang marunong,” he added.
On October 4, Duterte issued a memorandum barring his Cabinet members from attending the Senate inquiry due to “blatant disrespect” to resource persons and the time each hearing consumes that compromises the government’s pandemic response.
Lawmakers said while Duterte’s aides, particularly Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, may use the memorandum to evade the Senate probe, they will still see each other again during the budget deliberation where they will be scrutinized.
Duterte particularly criticized Senate blue ribbon committee chairman Senator Richard Gordon, who is leading the investigation, saying the probe is no longer in aid of legislation but in aid of the upcoming election.
The President has repeatedly urged the Senate to stop the investigation, maintaining there were no illegal transactions in the procurement of medical supplies during the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic which took the spotlight in the probe.
The probe stemmed from the report released by the Commission on Audit (COA) that flagged the irregularities in the use of Covid-19 funds by the DOH, including the P42 billion the agency transferred to the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) for the procurement of face masks, face shield, personal protective equipment (PPE) and Covid-19 test kits.
The biggest chunk of the said budget or P8.86 billion went to Pharmally Pharmaceuticals Corporation, a start-up company in the Philippines that supplied the government face masks, face shield, PPE and Covid-19 test kits tagged as overpriced by the lawmakers.
It was uncovered during the Senate investigation that Pharmally has links with former presidential adviser Michael Yang, prompting lawmakers to believe the reason why the company was “favored” and prioritized instead of the local manufacturers that could have helped boost employment in the country amid the pandemic.
Pharmally owner also admitted that Yang funded some of their transactions in order to fulfill their contract with PS but Yang denied it.
During Tuesday’s hearing, Gordon said the panel’s partial report includes the discovery that instead of coming up with the right way to quell the pandemic, earning and getting commission and kickbacks was prioritized by those who were involved in the anomalous transactions.
“It is clear and categorical to us that this grand conspiracy could never ever happen without the imprimatur of the executive,” he said.
Gordon said the panel will recommend the filing of charges for the violation of the anti-graft law, estafa, fraud, perjury, falsification of public documents and the Bayanihan law against several government and Pharmally officials. (SunStar Philippines)