Image from PhilHealth Facebook.
MANILA, Philippines — A Senate committee, which embarked on an investigation into alleged fraud within the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) in 2019, has recommended the immediate removal and the filing of graft and corruption charges against several regional executives of the agency.
“Ang mafia diyan, ang tunay diyan ay yung mga vice presidents, yung mga regional directors. Walang exemption yan. Lahat sila tumatagay diyan. Kumukuha diyan,” Gordon said on Tuesday presenting the Senate blue ribbon committee report on the investigation it conducted in 2019 on the alleged fraudulent activities in the agency.
(The mafia there, the real members are the vice presidents, the regional directors. All of them are getting their share.)
“Itong mga mafia na ito, sa Mindanao group karamihan tumitira to stay in their respective positions for some 20 years to 22 years hindi napapalitan. Hindi ba kayo magtataka?” he added.
(These mafia members, most of whom are from the Mindanao group, they try to stay in their respective positions for some 20 years to 22 years, they can’t be removed. Aren’t you wondering why?)
According to Gordon, the so-called “mafia” also orchestrated the removal of PhilHealth presidents attempting to remove its members from their respective posts.
“Hindi sila pinapalitan at dahil don nakapagipon sila ng napakalaking impluwensya,” Gordon said.
(They are not being replaced and so they were able to wield massive influence.)
In the committee’s investigation findings, the senator said the regional vice presidents allowed millions of overpayments to hospitals in their respective areas.
The committee report showed that the total of overpayments under the all case rate system of PhilHealth amounted to P54.7 million.
“All these overcharges, overpayments, upscaling, and other nefarious schemes could not have been perpetrated without their cooperation, or, maybe even, principal leadership,” the report read.
“There existed sufficient safeguards in the system that could have caught these criminal schemes had they performed their jobs faithfully and honestly,” it added.
The findings of Gordon’s committee comes around a year after it investigated alleged fraud and corruption within the state insurance company.
During one of the hearings in 2019, former PhilHealth officials named as alleged members of the mafia Khaliquzzaman Macabato, regional vice president (RVP) in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao; lawyer Valerie Anne H. Hollero, assistant corporate secretary; Datu Masiding Alonto Jr., RVP for Northern Mindanao; William Chavez, RVP for Central Visayas; and Paolo Johann Perez, RVP for Mimaropa.
Also identified as belonging to the group were Dennis Adre, RVP for Davao; lawyer Jelbert Galicto, RVP for Caraga; and Dr. Miriam Grace Pamonag, RVP for Central Mindanao.
These regional officials, however, denied allegations against them.
A year later, during the hearing of the Senate Committee of the Whole on August 18, Adre claimed that the “Mindanao group” is the “good” mafia within the agency.
“If we are to be called mafia for questioning flawed policies and illegal orders and exposing irregularities then so be it. But we are the good mafia, and they (execom members) are the real and bad mafia,” he told senators.
The Senate Committee of the Whole has terminated its investigation which spanned for three weeks.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III said the chamber is ready to come out with its report, a copy of which will be furnished to the Department of Justice.