Durano files measure vs. corporate abuses

 Cebu 5th district Rep. Ramon “Red” Durano filed a legislative measure seeking stringent accounting rules preventing corporate abuses that rip off ordinary citizens of their hard-earned savings.

House Bill 3458 was recently filed by Durano, in response to calls for stricter and responsible procedures of corporate scandals of private and public entities that caused investment loss among stakeholders.

The bill is patterned after the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 which was made into law by the United States Congress establishing new or enhanced standards for all U.S. public company boards, management, and public accounting firms.

According to the Explanatory Note of HB 3458, history both in the domestic and international setting is replete with scandals that brought corporate abuses ripping ordinary citizens off their savings and investments.

At the international scene, the United States Corporate Industry hogged the limelight in cases involving Enron and Anderson, revealing abuses perpetrated by top ranking officials of well-ranking corporations.

Enron was accordingly accused of using partnerships to hide losses and selling millions in company stocks while prohibiting employees from unloading their shares.

Anderson, on the other hand, was the accounting firm which made a lot of money consulting for Enron while serving as its editor.

A jury later found the company guilty of obstructing justice.

Here in the domestic scene, Durano said that BW Resources scandal of recent years mirrored the abuses in the same vein.

There are also educational pre-need companies such as Pacific Plans and College Assurance Plans have long defied public trust and confidence due to mismanagement of funds and resources.

“Even the Government Service and Insurance System (GSIS) and the Social Security System (SSS) are likewise being questioned in terms of their capability to sustain funds to pay the benefits to members as they fall due,” Durano said.

The bill, Durano said, seeks to curb corporate abuses by providing a stringent set of rules that will be more transparent and more accountable to its investors and general public.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 is also known as the Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act of 2002.  It is named after sponsors Senator Paul Sarbanes and Rep. Michael Oxley.   — Ferliza C. Contratista/BRP