Ex-PCSO chief, 10 others charged over drop in lotto earnings
Former PCSO Chair Erineo “Ayong” S. Maliksi. SCREENGRAB FROM WWW.LPP.GOV.PH
Former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) chair Erineo “Ayong” Maliksi and at least 10 other officials were charged before the Ombudsman with graft and breach of ethical conduct for the drop of lotto revenue from 2012 to 2015.
Leon Peralta of the Anti-Trapo Movement of the Philippines filed an amended complaint to the one his group filed in July.
Earlier, the group charged former and present PCSO officials over alleged procurement violations in the renewal of contracts awarded to Philippine Gaming and Management Corp. (PGMC) and Pacific Online Systems Corp. (POSC) in March and August 2015, respectively, for the operations of online lottery in the country.
READ: Ex-PCSO chiefs charged with graft over lotto deal
After filing the amended complaint, Peralta explained that they also charged the officials for their alleged hand in the drop in lotto sales from P31.3 billion in 2012 to P28.9 billion in 2015 as reported by the Commission on Audit.
In their complaint, the group said the “inaction (of the officials) constituting dereliction and omission of their sworn duties under the institution’s Charter, result(ed) in a significant decrease in the institution’s revenues.”
Despite the drop in revenue, Peralta lamented that PCSO officials received hefty allowances adding up to P907.090 million from 2012 to 2014, and P306.036 million in 2015.
Peralta explained that they also charged the officials for their alleged hand in the drop in lotto sales from P31.3 billion in 2012 to P28.9 billion in 2015 as reported by the Commission on Audit.
Peralta said the decrease in lotto revenue depleted the fund meant for the indigent beneficiaries of the PCSO.
He said the PCSO officials should be replaced and their bonuses returned to the medical support fund for the indigent beneficiaries.
“Sa pagbagsak ng revenue ng PCSO, sila’y nagpabaya sa kanilang obligasyon. Kaya, ang gusto naming maging solusyon, managot sila, at dapat i-revamp nang todo-todo ang mga opisyales ng PCSO… Marami tayong kapus-palad na kababayang nagdadalamhati nang dahil hindi sila nagbibigyan ng sapat na tulong ng PCSO,” Peralta said in an interview.
(In the revenue loss of PCSO, they neglected their obligations. That’s why, as a solution, we want them to be held liable and there should be a revamp of PCSO officials. We have many unfortunate countymen lamenting that they are not being given sufficient help by the PCSO.)
“Ang dapat ipalit sa mga taong naninilbihan sa ngayon na dati nasa ‘Tuwid na Daan’ sila, katulad ng sinasabi namin, dapat tamang daan para sa pagbabago ay ang daan ni Duterte (Those who have served under the previous ‘Tuwid na Daan’ administration should be replaced by people in the right path of genuine change under Duterte),” he added.
In the complaint, Peralta said the officials should be liable for graft, breach of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees and procurement law violations for foregoing public bidding in the extension of the Equipment Lease Agreement to Philippine Gaming and Management Corp. and Pacific Online Systems Corp.
“The technology… is not exclusively distributed or owned by said lessors but readily available and used by other companies; thus other entities can offer better pricing or more advanced technology better suited for the security and efficiency of the lotto operations in the country,” Peralta said.
Peralta said the officials should be held liable for graft and ethical breach “for their inaction to contain and avert further massive losses and deficits of the ‘Keno’ game as per finding of the Commission on Audit.”
Included in the charges are former PCSO chair Margarita P. Juico, former General Manager Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II, Former Board Director Florencio Gabriel G. Noel, and incumbent Board Directors Betty B. Nantes, Mabel V. Mamba and Francisco G. Joaquin III.
Also named were Conrado C. Zabella, Assistant General Manager of Gaming Product Development & Marketing Sector; Legal Department Manager Anna Liza P. Inciong, Gaming Technology Department Manager Arnel N. Casas, Product & Standard Development Department Manager Roger C. Ramirez, members of the PCSO Bids and Awards Committee, and other PCSO public officers and personnel who allegedly connived with the accused officials. CBB/RAM/rga
