Local governments were conduits for questionable ‘pork’ transactions – COA
COA Chair Grace Pulido-Tan MARIANNE BERMUDEZ
MANILA, Philippines — Provincial capitols, city halls, and barangay (village) halls have also been used by senators and representatives as conduits in the multi-billion peso pork barrel scam apart from the fake non-government organizations and conniving state agencies favored.
The recent Commission on Audit’s (COA) special report on priority development assistance funds (PDAF) released between 2007 and 2009 showed that at least P1.289 billion released through nine cities, six provinces and 109 barangays violated state procurement rules. Only 82 percent of these transactions were backed with documents that the COA considered “questionable” while the remaining 18 percent or P234.213 million had no disbursement vouchers at all.
The pork barrel funds deployed through these LGUs were used for their own expenses (purchases, repairs and rentals) and dole outs (from educational to medical to burial) as well as for office bills of their respective representatives.
The COA said the LGUs did not conduct bidding; had spurious lists of beneficiaries or none at all; equipment rentals and road contracts had no specific work plans; and no work program or event schedules to justify the use of taxpayer’s money.
These anomalies were akin to the irregularities that tainted the pork funds released to fake NGOs through implementing agencies such as the Department of Agriculture (and its corporate arms) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Mandaluyong City had the most “deficiencies noted” among the LGUs covered in the sample audit of the COA with P426.527 million worth of flawed transactions using the pork of incumbent and former representatives Neptali Gonzales Jr. (P256.381 million), Prospero Nograles (P47.325 million), Florencio G. Noel (P23.944 million), and Benjamin C. Abalos Jr. (P19.999 million).
These purchases ranged from P97.43 million for groceries for meetings and fireworks for events, to P6.315 million for medals and trophies for sports activities, to P50 million for cleaning and garden supplies and pest control.
The COA doubted the existence of most of the city’s suppliers that handled more than half of these deals. The COA said close to P30 million of these deals were denied outright by 28 suppliers, including a “pakyaw” contractor who was supposed to have been paid P5.117 million to clean the city’s estero. “The confirmation letter for Mr. Roberto Reyes, a pakyaw contractor, was delivered to his address but was not received by his spouse. The spouse, in her letter to the audit team, declared that Mr. Roberto Reyes is not a contractor but working in Camella Homes as a helper to the contractor and did not enter into any contract with the city government,” the COA audit team said.
The second biggest was Taguig City and three barangays with P184.175 million from the pork barrel of Henry Duenas Jr. (P50.449 million), Nograles (P24.98 million), Miriam Defensor-Santiago (P17.355 million), Juan Ponce Enrile (P4.995 million), Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano (P2.698 million) and Juan Flavier (P998,000).
Practically all of these transactions were considered by COA as defective including Duenas’ purchase of videoke machines, groceries, multicab, hardware supply, sporting goods and firearms and handcuffs.
The COA also questioned Cayetano’s allocation to three villages in Taguig City — P750,000 for uniforms for councilors hand-held radios and a mini-ambulance through Barangay Ligid; P748,000 for house numbering plates, a firebuster, and motorcycle with sidecar through Barangay Calzada; and P1.2 million for a motorcycle with sidecar and ambulance through Barangay Maharlika. The COA said the uniforms for councilors and motorcyle with sidecar (which was booked at P100,000 in Calzada and P550,000 in Maharlika) were not eligible for pork funding.
The third biggest was Las Piñas City, with P150.507 million coming from the pork of the couple Manuel and Cynthia Villar. The COA noted that five entities or individuals that receieved P96.866 million from the Villar’s pork did not submit vouchers — San Ildefenso, Bulacan; Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity; Las Pinas Lions Club Inc., Maria Criselda Celon, and Wendell Esteban.
The fourth biggest pork allocation was the P129.719 million earmarked by Edcel Lagman Jr. for Tabaco City. The COA said no vouchers were provided for these transactions while there was no posting or publication for the bidding of P118.13 million worth of roads, buildings, markets and canals bankrolled by his pork.
The rest of the LGUs that had irregularities in the use of pork were Davao Oriental with P112. 538 million (from Thelma Z. Almario, Nelson Dayanghirang and Nograles); Quezon City with P72.62 million (from Aquilino Pimentel Jr., Francisco Pangilinan, Ramon Magsaysay Jr., Vincent Crisologo, Mary Ann Susano, Matias Defensor Jr., Lagman, and Enrile); Manila with P50.352 million(from Benjamin Asilo, Theresa Bonoan-David, Amado Bagatsing, Lito Lapid, Monica-Louise Prieto-Teodoro and Zubiri); Iriga City with P44.558 million (from Felix R. Alfelor Jr., Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Mariano U. Piamonte Jr.); Tarlac with P28.235 million (Santiago and Jose V. Yap), Nueva Ecija City with P23.247 million (from Czarina D. Umali and Joseph Gilbert Violago); Compostela Valley with P14.158 million (from Nograles); Panabo City with P1.99 million (from Antonio F. Lagdameo Jr.) and Bataan with P722,000 (Albert Garcia).
