Palace on new pork scam: Let agencies explain to COA

MALACAÑANG on Tuesday said it would be up to the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) to explain to the Commission on Audit how taxpayers’ money was released to dubious non-government organization.

“Ayon sa batas, kapag may inilabas na obserbasyon ang COA, tungkulin ng mga tinutukoy na ahensya at mga opisyal na maghain ng paliwanag (According to the law, if the COA released an observation, it is the responsibility of the concerned agency or official to explain),” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a press briefing.

Asked for Malacañang’s reaction to the COA report linking 49 lawmakers, 47 of them allied with the administration, Coloma said the observation was not addressed to the Palace.

BACKSTORY: COA links 49 lawmakers to new pork, DAP scam

Coloma, however, insisted that the government of President Benigno Aquino III is determined to fight corruption.

“Ang dapat na maganap diyan ay alamin ang katotohanan at mabatid kung mayroong mga nalabag na batas at kung sino ang nagsagawa ng paglabag sa batas para mapanagot sila (The truth must be revealed to determine if any law was violated and those who violated the law should be held accountable),” he explained.

Coloma said Malacañang was not involved in the investigation since the COA is an independent constitutional body.

In its recent report, the COA said a total of P670 million from the now defunct Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP), which the Supreme Court declared partly unconstitutional, went to questionable NGOs recommended by 49 lawmakers.

In addition to Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Gregorio Honasan II, 47 lawmakers allied with the Aquino administration were identified in the COA report.

The NGOs, on the other hand, were not linked to alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles.

The COA said the NCMF was unable to submit complete documents in the grant and liquidation of the funds meant for Muslim Filipinos.

Out of the 21 NGOs, 15 were “unknown” or could not be located when COA conducted an inspection in January 2014.

“Since the ocular inspection was conducted, one to two years after the implementation of the project, the nonexistence of the addresses provided by most of the recipient NGOs/POs and the offices maintained by some of them which were no longer located was an indication that upon completion of the PDAF projects, they possibly ceased/stopped operation and/or probably involved in illegitimate business ventures,” the COA report said. AC