Senate blue ribbon committee urged to probe Pagcor’s ‘questionable’ hiring of external auditor
MANILA, Philippines—The Senate blue ribbon committee is being urged to investigate the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s (Pagcor) questionable procurement of a third-party auditor.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian filed Senate Resolution No. 452, a copy of which was shared with reporters on Wednesday, Feb. 1.
Gatchalian earlier said that Pagcor had been duped as he expressed dismay over the auditor’s (Global ComRCI) credibility issues.
“It is imperative that this seemingly anomalous government procurement and public expenditure must be examined and accounted for with zeal and vigor in order to maintain the trust and confidence of the people [in] the government,” the senator stated in his resolution.
“Kailangang busisiin nang maigi ang kwestiyonableng pagpili sa Global ComRCI bilang third party auditor ng mga POGO (Philippine offshore gaming operators). Kung mayroong paglabag sa batas, kailangan ring malaman kung sino ang mga nagkasala o lumabag sa batas,” he said in a statement.
(There is a need to look into the questionable hiring of Global ComRCI as a third-party auditor of Pogos. If there is a violation of the law, we need to know who is liable.)
During the last hearing of the Senate committee on ways and means, the senators learned that Pagcor had failed to comply with its existing procurement rules.
Among Pagcor’s rules is to procure a contractor with an operating capital of at least P1 billion. Global ComRCI, however, submitted a certification from a bank that is not registered with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
The Securities and Exchange Commission likewise confirmed that no corporation or partnership under the name Global ComRCI was registered with them.
Gatchalian further stressed that the auditor’s lack of technical capability to determine Pogos’ gaming revenue may result in the underpayment of the 2-percent franchise fee to Pagcor and the 5-percent gaming tax to the BIR.
Pagcor’s contract with Global ComRCI is P6 billion for 10 years. /ra/abc
