Morato decries ‘unfair’ treatment at Senate hearing, drops bombshell vs Juico

MANILA, Philippines—Manuel Morato, former chair of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, on Thursday complained that senators were biased against him and other former officials of the agency in their hearing on alleged fund anomalies.

But the “unfair” treatment did not stop Morato from dropping a bombshell against incumbent chair Margarita Juico, who set off the controversy by alleging that some bishops had received Mitsubishi Pajero vehicles from the PCSO.

Morato furnished reporters with a document alleging that Juico had dipped her fingers into advertising funds of the PCSO during her stint as director from 2001 to 2005.

It showed Juico purportedly spending at least P24.5 million in agency funds for advertisements of her choice across radio, television, and print. The single biggest ad placement was P4.8 million in radio under one “Mareco Bdctg.”

“Only the general manager should determine where the fund should go,” Morato told reporters after the Senate blue ribbon committee hearing. “But she asked and asked for this fund for her own beneficiaries.”

Morato also questioned Juico’s moral ascendancy in calling attention to the alleged misuse of the PCSO’s advertising fund. “But she herself is enjoying this,” he said.

Senators on Wednesday concluded that former PCSO promotions manager Manuel Garcia might have pocketed some P1.5 billion in alleged kickbacks from ad placements. The computation was based on the allegation that he had sought kickbacks amounting to 20 to 40 percent of the ad cost, less tax.

Garcia showed up at Thursday’s hearing but invoked his right to legal counsel. Senators excused him from the hearing also partly because of his high blood pressure.

Morato threatened to disclose supposedly corrupt activities by Juico at the PCSO prior to her appointment as its chairperson by President Benigno Aquino.

“She better pray when I start talking,” he warned in Filipino. “I will talk about her corruption in the past … I was involved in no corruption, but she, her husband, her child, her entire family (were involved)—it’s a family corporation, by golly!”

In Morato’s document titled “Advertisements c/o Director Juico,” she allegedly channeled ad funds amounting to P8,453,100 for radio, P14,050,00 for TV, and P2 million for print.

The television ads included P3.96 million for Global Sports Media, P1.98 million for the “Philippine 9-Ball (competition),” P3.9 million for Verbo Media “Double Team,” and P250,000 for an event titled “Bakbakan sa Elorde.”

In print, Juico allegedly spent P300,000 each for ads for the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s “1st Acoustic Valentine,” “Hitmakers,” and “Sheryn Regis & Christian Bautista” concerts. Another ad worth P350,000 was allegedly placed for Pagcor’s “Acoustic Festival.”