MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) officials tagged in corruption allegations may go on leave to show that they have “delicadeza” while an investigation is ongoing, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said Saturday.
“That’s what you call delicadeza. You don’t have to tell them to go on leave. You are being investigated, you know that you’re innocent,” Sotto said in Filipino in an interview over AM radio station DWIZ.
“That’s only right. Go on leave. That’s what delicadeza means. That’s good style,” he added.
Asked if an overhaul in the agency would be needed, Sotto said authorities should only go after rogue employees of PhilHealth.
“We can’t just do overhaul the whole thing. There are many trustworthy people there… There are just some bad eggs. We should look for these bad eggs,” he said.
A Senate resolution calling for the investigation on the reported widespread corruption at PhilHealth is expected to be filed on Monday, the same day that President Rodrigo Duterte will deliver his fifth State of the Nation Address.
/atm