Maliksi’s consultants not personally seen by PCSO union
Former Cavite Rep. Erineo “Ayong” Maliksi, now PCSO chairman. Photo from congress.gov.ph
The confidential consultants hired by Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Chairman Ireneo “Ayong” Maliksi were never personally seen by employees union.
Maliksi renewed the appointments of 19 “confidential agents” assigned to his office with their new contracts taking effect on April 1 this year.
“We found out that most of them were not personally seen by the union. We also hear reports that most of them are from Cavite,” said Jennifer Castro president of Filipino Alliance for Transparency and Empowerment.
In a letter dated Feb. 17, Maliksi renewed the appointments of Rowena Amparo, Ruben Caguiat, Maru Condalor, Marilou de Jesus, Cedric dela Cruz, Jennillyn Encabo, Herminio Ilagan, Cecile Jacobo, Dennis Leyba, Lorina Herrera, Ronnie Rufon, Enrique Voltaire Samala, Jeanna Marie Villanueva, Reynaldo Madlangbayan, Peejay Quitalig, Gina Quitalig, Mario Legaspi, Patrocinia Legaspi, and Julius Mallo.
However, the PCSO employees union have never seen the consultants at the PCSO office.
Maliksi is facing plunder and graft charges before the Office of the Ombudsman for hiring 30 ghost consultants, giving preferential treatment to his driver Celestino Aman and stopping the operations of the small town lottery (STL) that resulted in huge losses for the government.
FATE filed the complaints, saying Maliksi’s actions are gross violations of the law.
FATE said the funds used to pay for the consultants could have been used to assist poor Filipino patients who are in dire need of money to pay for their hospitalization.
Aman got more than P2 million in financial assistance from the PCSO through the efforts of Maliksi. The money was used to pay his Aman’s hospital bills at the Philippine Heart Center last year, FATE said.
In addition to the PCSO fund, Maliksi used the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) amounting to P700,000 to pay the remaining balance of Aman’s bill at the PHC.
