New PCSO bosses vow faster service

Guarantee letters processed in three days or less, more revenues and a trust fund to buy more medicines for the needy, a closer scrutiny of small town lottery (STL), and a better Lotto.

These were among the changes that can be expected at the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) under newly-appointed PCSO chair Jose Jorge Corpuz who said in a press conference on Tuesday that his priorities were improving the delivery of services and checking the system.

“From a week, we will try to process guarantee letters in 3 days or less,” said the former police director who assumed the post from former Cavite Gov. Erineo “Ayong” Maliksi.

Retired Major General Alexander Balutan meanwhile assumed the post of general manager of the state-run lottery agency after it was turned over to him by outgoing GM Ferdinand Rojas III.

Plunder case

“The marching order is to generate more revenue to buy more medicine. The idea of the President is to have a trust fund to buy more medicine and make this accessible to the needy Filipinos,” Corpuz said.

“STL is one of the problems, but it has a very big potential,” he said.   “We will look into it, how we can improve our product,” Corpuz said, stressing the need to check the implementing rules and regulations of STL, review alleged cases of underreporting, and look into its loopholes.

“After the war on illegal drugs, the war on illegal gambling is next,” Corpuz told reporters.

President Duterte earlier expressed the need for a “killer” in the PCSO system.

Clarified Corpuz: “Killer is a figure of speech. We will kill corruption definitely, but we’re not killers.  Here, we have a heart,” he added.

Asked if he would take up Sen. Franklin Drilon’s suggestion to ask former PCSO GM Rosario Uriarte about the plunder case involving P366 million in PCSO’s intelligence and confidential funds, the PCSO official said: “Is there a warrant of arrest? Was she found already? Why will I look for her?  No, we will not.”

“Whatever (happened in the past), we will learn from it definitely, avoid it, and pray that it will not happen (again),” he added.

Meanwhile, Marine Maj. Gen. Balutan, who expressed surprise at his appointment, said his plans of transforming the Caballo Island in Cavite as a new prison for minimum security inmates would have to be continued by another official.  Balutan was earlier seen as the next Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) director general.

Balutan said the PCSO has to be “mission-oriented, at the same time, revenue-oriented.”  He added: “We need to generate more funds for the people.”

Rationalization plan

The PCSO employees’ union welcomed the new appointments and said it had earlier written a manifesto in support of Mr. Duterte’s fight against crime and corruption.

“The challenge to the new government is to clean and look into issues at PCSO and change the current system,” said union president Joel Pastores, adding that the PCSO management should check on the PCSO rationalization plan, office transfer, as well as the disallowances and benefits of employees.

To increase the earnings of PCSO, Pastores suggested decreasing the price of Lotto tickets from P20 to P10 to make them more accessible and appealing to the people.

Christopher Bautista, vice president of the sweepstakes union, said the new administration also has to look into violations of the procurement law committed by the past administration. “Right now, the PCSO is paying around P4 million in rent every month to a private land owner. The new admin should look into this.”

“The problem in PCSO is a complex problem. The change has to be both. If you have problem with fund generation, you will definitely have problems with charity assistance. You cannot clean the charity assistance programs, without cleaning fund generation,” Bautista said.

“By all means, we will be helping PCSO, and hopefully they will help employees, too,” he added.