PNP ‘White House’ construction ’above board’

PNP ‘White House’ . Photo from https://purisimaplunder.com/

MANILA, Philippines – Despite criticisms, the construction of the controversial “White House” or official residence of the Philippine National Police (PNP) chief was “above board”, a spokesman said Friday.

“The construction project for the PNP White House or the official residence of the Chief, PNP is above board. It is not a real property given to Police Director General Alan La Madrid Purisima, the incumbent PNP Chief, as a person but a tangible asset of the PNP that will be issued to future PNP Chiefs,” Police Superintendent Reuben Theodore C. Sindac said.

Sindac said the list of donors was not immediately released due to privacy and security issues.

“The donors’ privacy and security issues had to be seriously considered, hence, their identity could not be immediately revealed,” he said.

He clarified that a “Deed of Donation” could only be executed once the structure was completed.

“The Deed of Donation could not be executed if the subject property is not absolutely finished. For this reason, the Deed of Donation is being presented after the completion of a certain project,” he said.

He said the release was delayed due to the finishing touches and architectural improvements made on the “White House”.

He added that the completion was also largely dependent on the availability of donors.

Sindac said the deed of donation was signed and executed after full completion of the Chief PNP quarters.

He added that the construction of the “White House” was undertaken through a “design and build” project in line with the donors’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

“It was borne out of the need to replace the old “White House” which was badly damaged by Typhoon Ondoy in 2009,” he said.

“There was no urgency at the start, but due to the controversies that were raised, we had to expedite the processing of the Deed of Donation to comply with the auditing requirements,” he added.
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