PNP maintained 22 PCSO fund accounts?

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine National Police (PNP) apparently enjoyed perks amounting to millions of pesos from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) during the term of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Sources revealed yesterday that the PNP maintained at least 22 accounts, which included among others the PNP Sweepstakes Funds.

The fund, sources explained, was used to purchase police equipment, which included P8.5 million to buy handguns in 2009. About P5.21 million was also set aside for the renovation of some offices in the same year.

Other accounts included the PCSO-AIDSOTF fund, PCSO Special Fund, PCSO Financial Assistance Fund, PCSO-Police Community Relations Group (PCRG) Fund, PCSO-PNP Program Management Fund, and the PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.) - AIDSOTF (Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force) Fund.

The AIDSOTF was formed by then President Arroyo during the term of retired PNP chief Edgar Aglipay. The fund remains operational.

The Commission on Audit (COA) had noted the PCSO and PAGCOR funds, amounting to millions of pesos, in its 2009 report.

A separate document obtained by The STAR revealed that “much of the PNP Sweepstakes Fund” have been used up by Oct. 9, 2009 with only about P12 million left in the PNP coffers.

The sources virtually confirmed the earlier statements of National Police spokesman Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz who admitted the PNP is getting intelligence funds from the PCSO.

Cruz said he knew the PCSO was providing intelligence funds to the police regional offices.

Cruz, however, clarified he had no personal knowledge of the PCSO giving intelligence allowance to the PNP on the national level.

Sen. Franklin Drilon, chairman of the Senate finance committee that reviews the annual budget of government agencies, yesterday said he had no idea about the PNP getting funds from the PCSO.

Tighter control of funds

Lawmakers led by Sen. Francis Escudero took note of the contributions made by the PCSO to several government agencies.

Escudero called for a review of all laws mandating the PCSO to contribute funds to several government agencies and institutions.

“The mandatory contributions were made by law when the funding were charged to the PCSO when the respective laws were passed.

Technically, (the use of that purpose is) legal. These are part of authorized expenditures,” he said.

Asked what kind of legislation can come out of the Senate hearings, Escudero said he wants a tight control on the PCSO funds by removing the discretionary powers of its officials to dispense funds.

Escudero is pushing the authority to earmark funds should be given to Congress, which means the funds should go to the national treasury and included in the national outlay.

Escudero noted the PCSO is mandated by virtue of special laws to contribute funds to the Philippine Sports Commission, Commission on Higher Education, Comprehensive and Integrated Shelter and Urban Development Financing Program, among other national agencies.

The PCSO also allocates five percent to local government units from the total sales of online lotto outlets operating within their jurisdictions, including a documentary stamp tax from the donations.

The Migrant Workers Act of 1995 also tasked the PCSO to set aside P150 million from the proceeds of lotto draws to the Congressional Migrant Workers Scholarship Fund.

There is also P250 million from the annual net earnings from lotto for the Museum Endowment Fund.

There is Executive Order 201, in which a P1-billion standby fund is mandated for the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) awareness and health promotion campaign, while another P1 billion is on standby for the operations and programs of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

Sen. Ralph Recto earlier noted the additional funds given to the PCSO do not undergo congressional scrutiny during budget deliberations.

Neither is the PSCO mandated by law to submit a report to Congress regarding its income and on how the funds are disbursed by the agency, he said.

For his part, Negros Occidental Rep. Alfredo Benitez noted the PCSO charter was made in 1957 and many laws have been passed since then, particularly on the creation of government agencies and offices that got their funding from the state firm.

“I’m gathering laws and directives that mandated some funding from the PCSO. Some of the agencies may have been abolished already or the purpose for which the funding was required from the PCSO is no longer needed or relevant,” Benitez said.

Benitez pushed for the amendment of the PCSO charter as well as the reallocation of its intelligence funds for purely charitable purposes.

“The charter is vague on how the agency should dispose its funds and for a long time, they have enjoyed the flexibility. And I don’t understand why they need intelligence funds when intelligence work is not their expertise.

That is for law enforcement agencies. These funds should be realigned for their main function of charity work,” he said.

The House of Representatives is set to conduct an inquiry on the issue based on the resolution filed by Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo.

Zambales Rep. Milagros Magsaysay said the review of the PCSO charter and functions also leads to giving the agency some independence. The PCSO is currently under the Office of the President.

GMA is the target

Arroyo’s lawyer Raul Lambino, on the other hand, claimed the target of the congressional investigation on the PCSO fund mess was the former chief executive.

“The former president (Arroyo) only acted on this mandate which is allowed under the rules of the Commission on Audit.  The plunder charges are baseless and unfounded. They just want to connect Mrs. Arroyo to the controversy when she has nothing to do with the disbursements of funds,” Lambino said.

Former PCSO board member Manuel Morato echoed Lambino’s observations

Morato maintained the present PCSO board already committed some irregularities shortly after they assumed their posts.

Morato said the decision of the incumbent PCSO board to transfer offices from the Quezon Institute to the Philippine International Convention Center was anomalous.

He said PCSO chair Margie Juico strongly pushed the transfer to pave the way for the sale of highly priced Quezon City property to real estate firms. The transfer also removed PCSO’s right of first refusal in purchasing the property.

“The real target is GMA (Arroyo). They want to implicate her, but I don’t think they have anything to pin her down,” Morato said. – With Paolo Romero