Morato hits back: Juico lying through her teeth, has her own scams at PCSO

MANILA, Philippines – Former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office chair and director Manoling Morato called PCSO Chair Margarita Juico of “lying through her teeth” just to convince President Aquino to keep her in her post longer.

In a phone interview, Morato said that instead of making baseless accusations against him and other members of the previous PCSO board, Juico should just file her case in court and end this “trial by publicity.’’

Morato said that Juico was “desperate” because she could lose her post under the recently signed GOCC Governance Act. The law provides that all heads of state agencies have only a one-year term and their extension would be subject to the approval of the President, according to Morato.

“She knows the President will kick her out of her post come July 1 because of how she mismanaged PCSO. She has been in PCSO for 25 years and it has been her life-long dream to be its chair. Even (President Cory) Aquino did not want her to be chair,” said Morato.

Morato explained that since the PCSO was under the Office of the President, Arroyo had control over the agency, including conversion of at least P150 million of PCSO’s public relations fund into intelligence funds that were not subject to state audit. The conversion, Morato said, was requested by former PCSO general manager Rosario Uriarte. Juico had raised questions on Arroyo’s marginal notes on the letter request of Uriarte.

Morato said that the increase in intelligence funds was necessary because these were used as “blood money’’ to save Filipino workers who were facing execution abroad. Morato said the money was also used to gather intelligence reports on jueteng operations as part of the PCSO’s move to strengthen its small town lottery unit.

Morato said that when the old board left, PCSO had P3.3 billion in two banks; $6 million in foreign currency deposits; and a prime property worth P1 billion. He said that this was much more than the P4 billion in debt that the PCSO had allegedly accumulated under Arroyo.

Morato, however, could not say for certain whether the funds left by the Arroyo-appointed board were strictly for charity, operating expenses or prize fund but he stressed that all these funds were compiled in separate books as mandated by the PCSO charter. (Juico said a COA report showed that the old PCSO board co-mingled the charity and operating funds which was a no-no in its charter).

“I don’t know where she got her figures, she is really good at inventing them. These are all lies, she is hiding the truth,’’ said Morato who was assigned as the old PCSO board’s spokesperson.

Morato said the members of the old PCSO board would be willing to face Juico not only in court, but also in the congressional investigation set after the President’s State of the Nation Address on July 25. Morato said his group would report on Juico’s anomalous deals such as the purchase of baby incubators for P1.8 million each (Morato claimed that these were worth only P200,000), and portable x-rays for P4.9 million (Morato said the actual price was P1.25 million).

Morato said that Juico was the one who asked Arroyo (Juico served in the PCSO board until 2005) to revise the PCSO rules to allow the board to approve projects worth P5 million and below. “This is why all the projects she was endorsing to the board were below P5 million. When I was PCSO chair, all projects worth more than P100,000 had to be approved by the President,’’ said Morato.

Morato claimed that Juico’s decision to tighten up on PCSO’s dole-outs was misplaced since the agency was seen as a last resort by the poor and the sick. Morato claimed that 31 people had died after the PCSO rejected their medical claims. Juico said Morato has not been able to reveal the identities of the spurned applicants, to date.