Ombudsman orders six-month suspension vs 13 PhilHealth officials
MANILA, Philippines — Ombudsman Samuel Martires has ordered the six-month suspension of 13 officials of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. amid an ongoing probe on the alleged corruption in the agency.
In two suspension orders shared by Iloilo 1st District Rep. Janette Garin on Wednesday, the following officials were ordered suspended for six months without pay:
- Roy B. Ferrer
- Celestina Ma. Jude dela Serna
- Ruben John A. Basa
- Dennis S. Mas – Senior Vice President, Management Services Sector
- Shirley B. Domingo – Vice President, Corporate Affairs Group
- Rodolfo Del Rosario Jr. – Senior Vice President
- Raul Cominic Badilla
- Israel Pargas
- Angelito Grande
- Lawrence Mijares
- Leila Tuazon – Acting Senior Manager Operations, Audit Department
- Roy B. Ferrer
- Ruben John Basa
- Clementine A. Bautista – Vice President, Quality Assurance Group
- Angelito Grande
- Eugenio G. Donatos II
The suspension orders were issued on August 18, Tuesday.
It was unclear from which complaint the suspension order was stemmed.
In a Twitter post, PhilHealth said it has yet to receive a copy of the Ombudsman order.
“As of this time, the concerned officers are not aware of the charges against them. We will issue a full statement as soon as we get hold of the said order,” it said.
“As of this time, the concerned officers are not aware of the charges against them. We will issue a full statement as soon as we get hold of the said order,” the state health insurer added.
PhilHealth has yet to receive a copy of the Ombudsman Order supposedly placing some of its senior officers under preventive suspension. As of this time, the concerned pic.twitter.com/VzvnoZiIIX
— PhilHealth (@teamphilhealth) August 19, 2020
PhilHealth is currently under fire following claims of massive corruption within the agency.
Among allegations of corruption raised involve the procurement of alleged overpriced IT equipment; a supposedly questionable release of funds under the corporation’s Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM); and the alleged manipulation of the corporation’s financial status.
