Belgica sued for graft over Duty Free probe

A group of Duty Free Philippines Corp. (DFPC) employees has filed a graft complaint against Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) official Greco Belgica in the Office of the Ombudsman, saying they were “very frustrated and disappointed” about how he handled the probe on the irregularities within DFPC.

The nine DFPC employees, in an affidavit filed on Thursday, filed charges of grave misconduct, conduct prejudicial to service, gross inexcusable negligence and violations of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, against the commissioner.

They said Belgica watered down his report and recommendation on the alleged smuggling activities between DFPC officials and big-time entrepreneurs. Belgica, however, denied the accusations.

The complainants said they first sought Belgica’s assistance in 2017.

Despite Belgica’s promise that they would not be charged legal fees, the employees said they paid P1,000 for each page of the affidavit or a total of P130,000.

In the affidavit, the DFPC employees said they also gathered evidence over the “widespread smuggling” within DFPC, which allegedly involved DFPC chief operating officer Vicente Pelagio Angala.

But the employees noted that things changed when Belgica met with Angala without them. Belgica also asked the complainants to sign a waiver that they did not read.