PCSO to be a bit more stingy

The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) will be a bit more stingy when it comes to granting requests for assistance, Malacañang said on Thursday.

Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda made the remarks as the Senate blue ribbon committee grilled the Arroyo administration’s PCSO officials on alleged misuse of funds and on favoring some politicians in the grant of requests for ambulance.

The Senate panel also questioned the supposed PCSO’s donations of vehicles to Catholic bishops.

“Gauging from the revelations of the PCSO, I think they will be more prudent in deciding requests for assistance,” Lacierda said at a news briefing.

“The request will be reviewed with a fine-tooth comb in making sure that the purpose by which the request is sought is geared toward charitable purposes. That’s all I can say until we receive a report from PCSO,” he said.

“Very clearly, they will be stricter,” Lacierda added.

Lacierda said there would be more transparency in the donations made by the agency to do away with insinuations that the funds were being used to buy political support.

“There was a lot of criticism against the former administration of the PCSO about a (local official) that received 20 ambulance units. I’m sure that won’t happen again,” Lacierda said.

Twenty ambulance units were given to Ilocos Sur when most other provinces only received one each.

Lacierda said other reforms that he had seen included poverty mapping of provinces to prioritize areas that need donations such as ambulance.

In addition, the present PCSO board meets with the President as a group, he said.