PhilHealth reshuffle: Duterte orders Gierran to remove all regional vice presidents

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday night ordered incoming Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) chief Dante Gierran to immediately implement a reshuffle within the state insurance firm.

In a taped speech, Duterte introduced Gierran, former National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) chief, as the replacement for resigned PhilHealth chief Ricardo Morales, amid investigations of alleged anomalies in the agency.

“He is a lawyer and an accountant… I told him the next two years will be devoted to [the] fight against corruption. Find people we can send to prison so that we can leave them there,” Duterte said, speaking partly in Fiilipino.

The President then told Gierran: “Remove all the regional vice presidents — whether performing at par, or in parity, with the other good ones.”

“You know if they [have been] there for so long a time. The element of familiarity always enters the picture. That’s what complicates things. If they’ve been there a long time, remove them. If there are those who refuse to be removed, report them to my office,” Duterte added.

The President also said that he will also order a reshuffle at the Bureau of Customs—accused of corruption.

Morales, who was reportedly undergoing treatment for lymphoma, stepped down from his post after Duterte asked him to resign due to his medical condition.

Morales’ sresignation came at the height of investigations over the alleged systematic corruption within the state health insurance firm.

Duterte has created an inter-agency task force led by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to probe PhilHealth officials over the corruption claims which were unearthed during recent congressional inquiries.

Among the 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 records.

The President said Justice Secretay Menardo Guevarra was already “winding up his investigation”.

“I think he has seen proof enough to come up with an indictment. I hope this sad episode in our national life, in our journey towards nation-building will be somehow corrected,” he said.

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