MANILA, Philippines - At least 15 congressmen are seeking an investigation into the alleged misuse of more than P50 billion in funds for road maintenance, road safety and pollution control.
Representatives Abraham Mitra of Palawan, Paul Daza of Northern Samar, Marc Douglas Cagas of Davao del Sur, Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City, Niel Tupas Jr. of Iloilo and Carlos Padilla of Nueva Vizcaya sought the inquiry in separate manifestations they made at recent House hearings.
Eight other congressmen led by Deputy Speaker Eric Singson of Ilocos Sur filed a resolution also proposing an investigation. The congressmen said a large part of the money goes to the pockets of corrupt officials and contractors.
The funds whose use or misuse they want the House to look into are collections from the so-called motor vehicle user’s charge (MVUC), otherwise known as the road user’s tax.
This is a levy Congress imposed six or seven years ago on owners of all motor vehicles, whose annual registration fees were increased by 100 percent over a four-year period.
The collections go to a special fund administered by an agency called the Road Board, which the secretary of public works and highways chairs and which is attached to his department.
More than P50 billion in MVUV taxes have been collected. Annual collections now reach P10 billion to P11 billion.
Most of the funds go to road maintenance and safety projects such as the installation of catch eye markers and guard rails. A portion goes to pollution control. Mitra said despite insistent prodding from him and his colleagues, the House committee on public works chaired by Leyte Rep. Roger Mercado has not conducted a hearing on the misuse and misallocation of MVUC funds.
Mitra has filed a resolution that seeks to abolish the Road Board and to use MVUC collections to support the annual budget instead of the money going to a special fund outside the control of the Department of Budget and Management and being dissipated.
Padilla complained that projects funded by more than P400 million in road maintenance and road safety money allocated to his province four years ago could not be found. “The projects and the money have vanished,” he said.
There were complaints of missing funds in other provinces as well. In Eastern Samar, road signs and guard rails worth P350 million could not be located.
“What we need here are roads, not catch eye markers and guard rails,” one local official said.
Many congressmen complain of inequitable distribution of funds. For instance, in the past two years, Nueva Ecija was given about P2 billion in MVUC money.
More than P1 billion of the projects in Nueva Ecija were given to a newly formed company called Meditech Trade and Development Corp. The company has also won contracts in Laguna.
Nueva Ecija officials said they could hardly find the P2 billion projects in their province.
Rep. Rodriguez, who belongs to the opposition bloc in the House, complained of politics in the allocation of MVUC money.
He said his district was not given funds, while other districts received tens of millions and even hundreds of millions.
In their resolution, Singson and his seven other colleagues, all belonging to the Northern Luzon bloc of congressmen, said the House should revisit the MVUC tax.
Despite the collection and expenditure of more than P50 billion, they said many roads are still in a state of disrepair and are not safe to travel.
They said people need roads, not luminous signs and markers and guard rails.
They stressed that the bulk of the money is just being dissipated for projects that the public does not really need.
(Comments: Nagpapogi na naman ang mga corrupt congressmen na ito. Kunwari pa silang magrereport ng kurapsiyon ng iba... nagturo ng mga kurap, eh sila din mas kurap! Hay naku, talaga. Baka naman napilitan lang silang magreport ng kurapsiyon dahil hindi sila nabigyan ng 'tong' sa mga projects na ito? O, baka naman kasi malapit na ang eleksiyon kaya nagkukunwari na naman ang mga congreemen na ito na magmalinis ng kanilang papel na singputi ng ulap sa langit? Lumang istorya na ito. Style bulok na! Kelangan na nating mag-aksiyon, mga kababayan. Palitan na ng mga bagong Pilipino ang liderato sa Malacanang, sa senado, sa kongreso, mga governors, mayors, even barangay captain. Palitan na rin ang mga government civil servants (military, civil, etc.) na corrupt din. Kailangan ng overhauling ang ating bansa. Parang kotseng ii-overhaul. Kelangan ibaba ang makina, buksan, change oil, etc.. para mabago ang sistema at makinabang na ang nakararami).
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
'Balikatan funds misused'
By Jaime Laude, Philstar
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of National Defense has confirmed an ongoing probe into the alleged misuse of some P46 million for the 2007 RP-US Balikatan exercises, but said it is keeping its hands off the case of the whistle-blower – a female Navy officer – who is reportedly facing summary dismissal proceedings for another offense.
“I understand that she is now facing an investigation before the Philippine Navy’s Efficiency and Separation Board (ESB) and I will have to wait for the results of this probe before taking any action,” Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. said.
Teodoro was referring to the case of Lt. Senior Grade Nancy Gadian, who is under investigation for alleged insubordination and for lavish spending during her term as head of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom)’s Civil Military Operations based in Zamboanga City.
Gadian had claimed that her then immediate commander, former Westmincom chief retired Gen. Eugenio Cedo, misused the P46 million provided by the United States for the Balikatan exercises.
She claimed that of the amount only P2.7 million went to Balikatan’s CMO projects.
But Cedo, in an interview over radio dzRH yesterday, belied the allegations, saying he never benefited from the funds and instead accused Gadian of trying to get back at him because he ordered her investigated for her failure to account for the Balikatan funds in her care. Cedo retired in 2007.
However, military records showed that Gadian had been cleared of any accountability by the military’s internal audit on Balikatan funds, except for an unaccounted P2,500 in hotel expenses.
The charges of insubordination reportedly stemmed from her refusal to face a probe for her lavish spending in a hotel in Zamboanga City. It was not clear if the investigators were referring to the P2,500 unaccounted hotel expenses.
On the other hand, the Navy urged Gadian to formalize her charges of corruption against Cedo.
Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo asked Gadian to support her allegations against Cedo by filing appropriate charges.
“We urge her to come out in the open, formalize her complaint, adduce evidence by attaching documents that would substantiate her complaint or her claims of corruption and then the Navy is willing to help her clear her name,” he said.
“We are not saying that she is right or wrong. What is important here is for her to formalize her complaint because we will not conduct investigation based on mere allegations,” Arevalo added.
“It is also important for us to protect the name and integrity of one of our colleagues in the Navy,” he said, referring to Gadian.
“What we were saying is she is an officer. She has served the Navy for 12 years, so being an officer, we know that she understands what she is saying and she knows, she appreciates the repercussions of what she’s saying, so we urge her to come out in the open,” Arevalo added.
Arevalo maintained that the junior officer is still a member of the Navy, despite having filed her resignation last April 16, because her papers have yet to be evaluated.
He admitted that Gadian might also be held liable for airing her charges in public and not going through the Navy’s internal grievance mechanism.
(Comment: Hay, corruption everywhere! Filipinos, if we will not do anything with the deep corruption in the country, our future will be dark and dreary. There will be more sufferings, tag-gutom at tag-tuyo. There will be chaos if we can no longer afford to buy basic food, shelter, clothing or even send our kids to school. Without the OFW remittances, the country will be 'fed to the dogs!' Only the strong will surive).
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of National Defense has confirmed an ongoing probe into the alleged misuse of some P46 million for the 2007 RP-US Balikatan exercises, but said it is keeping its hands off the case of the whistle-blower – a female Navy officer – who is reportedly facing summary dismissal proceedings for another offense.
“I understand that she is now facing an investigation before the Philippine Navy’s Efficiency and Separation Board (ESB) and I will have to wait for the results of this probe before taking any action,” Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. said.
Teodoro was referring to the case of Lt. Senior Grade Nancy Gadian, who is under investigation for alleged insubordination and for lavish spending during her term as head of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom)’s Civil Military Operations based in Zamboanga City.
Gadian had claimed that her then immediate commander, former Westmincom chief retired Gen. Eugenio Cedo, misused the P46 million provided by the United States for the Balikatan exercises.
She claimed that of the amount only P2.7 million went to Balikatan’s CMO projects.
But Cedo, in an interview over radio dzRH yesterday, belied the allegations, saying he never benefited from the funds and instead accused Gadian of trying to get back at him because he ordered her investigated for her failure to account for the Balikatan funds in her care. Cedo retired in 2007.
However, military records showed that Gadian had been cleared of any accountability by the military’s internal audit on Balikatan funds, except for an unaccounted P2,500 in hotel expenses.
The charges of insubordination reportedly stemmed from her refusal to face a probe for her lavish spending in a hotel in Zamboanga City. It was not clear if the investigators were referring to the P2,500 unaccounted hotel expenses.
On the other hand, the Navy urged Gadian to formalize her charges of corruption against Cedo.
Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo asked Gadian to support her allegations against Cedo by filing appropriate charges.
“We urge her to come out in the open, formalize her complaint, adduce evidence by attaching documents that would substantiate her complaint or her claims of corruption and then the Navy is willing to help her clear her name,” he said.
“We are not saying that she is right or wrong. What is important here is for her to formalize her complaint because we will not conduct investigation based on mere allegations,” Arevalo added.
“It is also important for us to protect the name and integrity of one of our colleagues in the Navy,” he said, referring to Gadian.
“What we were saying is she is an officer. She has served the Navy for 12 years, so being an officer, we know that she understands what she is saying and she knows, she appreciates the repercussions of what she’s saying, so we urge her to come out in the open,” Arevalo added.
Arevalo maintained that the junior officer is still a member of the Navy, despite having filed her resignation last April 16, because her papers have yet to be evaluated.
He admitted that Gadian might also be held liable for airing her charges in public and not going through the Navy’s internal grievance mechanism.
(Comment: Hay, corruption everywhere! Filipinos, if we will not do anything with the deep corruption in the country, our future will be dark and dreary. There will be more sufferings, tag-gutom at tag-tuyo. There will be chaos if we can no longer afford to buy basic food, shelter, clothing or even send our kids to school. Without the OFW remittances, the country will be 'fed to the dogs!' Only the strong will surive).
Teachers to get P6,500 pay hike
By Jess Diaz, Philstar
MANILA, Philippines – Public school teachers will receive a P6,500 salary increase under the compensation adjustment program that the House of Representatives was scheduled to approve last night.
The program calls for increasing the teachers’ basic monthly pay to P18,549 over four years from the present P12,000.
The first installment of the adjustment would be paid on July 1 this year. Teachers’ groups are demanding an immediate increase of P3,000.
For Representatives Carlos Padilla of Nueva Vizcaya and Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City, P6,500 spread over four years is not enough. “This is not equal pay for work of equal value,” Padilla said, noting that teachers, unlike desk-bound bureaucrats, work long hours.
And yet, high-ranking bureaucrats such as undersecretaries, assistant secretaries and directors will get an increase of 100 percent of their basic pay, excluding allowances, he said.
Unlike teachers, he said these officials receive additional compensation in the form of fat allowances.
Padilla proposed that teachers who hold salary grade 10 under the 33-grade government compensation scheme should be adjusted to grade 15 with a monthly salary of P24,878.
Rodriguez, on the other hand, took up the cudgels for the more than 100,000 soldiers.
He said under the proposed pay adjustment program, soldiers would receive an additional P4,000 over four years, or P1,000 a year.
Since the first installment would be given on July 1, the lowest-paid members of the Armed Forces would be getting only P500 for this year, he said. He said soldiers, like teachers, work long hours and can even be considered as working 24 hours a day.
Under the proposed program, the President would have a salary of P120,000, up 100 percent from P60,000; while the Vice President would receive P103,000, which also represents a 100-percent increase.
Members of Congress would double their salaries to P90,000. Other bureaucrats getting substantial increases are undersecretaries, whose basic pay would be adjusted to P78,946; assistant secretaries, P73,099; and directors, P67,684.
The pay adjustment program is contained in Joint Resolution 36, which President Arroyo certified as urgent last Tuesday. The certification will enable the House to speed up its approval, which was expected to take place late last night.
(Comments:
Una: Like I mentioned in this blog, kayang madoble ang sweldo ng ating mga guro, sundalo, kapulisan, at iba pang kawani ng gobyerno sa buong Pilipinas kung masusugpo nating ang graft and corruption sa bansa. Bakit kailangan doblehin ang suweldo ng matataas sa gobyerno at hindi at par sa naninilbihan sa ibaba? Ang mga teachers, sundalo, pulis, etc. ang araw-araw na nasa front line at marami sa kanila ang overworked pa. Nararapat lamang na bigyan sila ng health insurance, free housing, other benefits na hindi maibigay ng gobyerno dahil sa kawalan ng pera sa kaban dahil sa corruption. Panahon na para baguhin natin ang mabahong practice at sistemang ito na ninuno pa natin sa ilang dekadang pandaraya at panglilinglang sa mga civil servants.
MANILA, Philippines – Public school teachers will receive a P6,500 salary increase under the compensation adjustment program that the House of Representatives was scheduled to approve last night.
The program calls for increasing the teachers’ basic monthly pay to P18,549 over four years from the present P12,000.
The first installment of the adjustment would be paid on July 1 this year. Teachers’ groups are demanding an immediate increase of P3,000.
For Representatives Carlos Padilla of Nueva Vizcaya and Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City, P6,500 spread over four years is not enough. “This is not equal pay for work of equal value,” Padilla said, noting that teachers, unlike desk-bound bureaucrats, work long hours.
And yet, high-ranking bureaucrats such as undersecretaries, assistant secretaries and directors will get an increase of 100 percent of their basic pay, excluding allowances, he said.
Unlike teachers, he said these officials receive additional compensation in the form of fat allowances.
Padilla proposed that teachers who hold salary grade 10 under the 33-grade government compensation scheme should be adjusted to grade 15 with a monthly salary of P24,878.
Rodriguez, on the other hand, took up the cudgels for the more than 100,000 soldiers.
He said under the proposed pay adjustment program, soldiers would receive an additional P4,000 over four years, or P1,000 a year.
Since the first installment would be given on July 1, the lowest-paid members of the Armed Forces would be getting only P500 for this year, he said. He said soldiers, like teachers, work long hours and can even be considered as working 24 hours a day.
Under the proposed program, the President would have a salary of P120,000, up 100 percent from P60,000; while the Vice President would receive P103,000, which also represents a 100-percent increase.
Members of Congress would double their salaries to P90,000. Other bureaucrats getting substantial increases are undersecretaries, whose basic pay would be adjusted to P78,946; assistant secretaries, P73,099; and directors, P67,684.
The pay adjustment program is contained in Joint Resolution 36, which President Arroyo certified as urgent last Tuesday. The certification will enable the House to speed up its approval, which was expected to take place late last night.
(Comments:
Una: Like I mentioned in this blog, kayang madoble ang sweldo ng ating mga guro, sundalo, kapulisan, at iba pang kawani ng gobyerno sa buong Pilipinas kung masusugpo nating ang graft and corruption sa bansa. Bakit kailangan doblehin ang suweldo ng matataas sa gobyerno at hindi at par sa naninilbihan sa ibaba? Ang mga teachers, sundalo, pulis, etc. ang araw-araw na nasa front line at marami sa kanila ang overworked pa. Nararapat lamang na bigyan sila ng health insurance, free housing, other benefits na hindi maibigay ng gobyerno dahil sa kawalan ng pera sa kaban dahil sa corruption. Panahon na para baguhin natin ang mabahong practice at sistemang ito na ninuno pa natin sa ilang dekadang pandaraya at panglilinglang sa mga civil servants.
Panagalwa: Tingnan natin kung magkano ang tamang suweldo ng ating top officials ayon sa balitang ito:
"The President would have a salary of P120,000, up 100 percent from P60,000; while the Vice President would receive P103,000, which also represents a 100-percent increase.
Members of Congress would double their salaries to P90,000. Other bureaucrats getting substantial increases are undersecretaries, whose basic pay would be adjusted to P78,946; assistant secretaries, P73,099; and directors, P67,684."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
