WHAT WENT BEFORE
On January 27, retired Lt. Col. George Rabusa appeared at a Senate hearing and disclosed how it had become a tradition for senior military officers to receive a pabaon (sendoff gift) in the tens of millions of pesos.
Rabusa testified at the Senate blue ribbon committee’s initial inquiry into the plea bargain between state prosecutors and ex-military comptroller Carlos Garcia. He was brought in as a surprise witness by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada.
Rabusa served as budget chief of the Office of the Armed Forces’ Deputy Chief of Staff for Comptrollership (J6) from November 1999 until 2002. J6 was abolished in 2005 and replaced by four independent offices.
Rabusa said that when Angelo Reyes retired as AFP chief of staff in 2001, he received a pabaon of “not less than” P50 million.
P5M monthly
On top of that, Reyes allegedly also received at least P5 million a month during his 20 months as AFP chief of staff.
Article continues after this advertisementRabusa said the distribution of huge sums to top military officials was a “tradition” in the AFP. He said the system also benefited former AFP Chiefs of Staff Diomedio Villanueva and Roy Cimatu.
Article continues after this advertisementHe admitted that he himself had pocketed money from military funds and that he helped his boss, Garcia, “convert” almost P1 billion from 2001 to 2002 for distribution to ranking officers and other recipients outside the AFP.
Rabusa said the money came mainly from the annual military slush fund of P480 million, known as the provisions for command-directed activities (PCDA), and allocations from the personnel services budget of the military.
In a succeeding hearing, Rabusa said the AFP chiefs of staff as well as other officers also had a slush fund of P20 million for their personal and operational use. The fund was replenished by allocations skimmed off the salaries and operational expenses of military units.
Reyes denied the allegations against him and filed graft charges against Estrada and Rabusa in the Office of the Ombudsman on Jan. 31.
On Feb. 8, Reyes took his own life. Inquirer Research
Source: Inquirer Archives
