GMA creates task force vs. investment scams

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has issued Administrative Order No. 185 creating an Investor Protection Task Force (IPTF) to curb the proliferation of illegal pyramiding and network investment schemes victimizing the general public and the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). 

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the primary job of the IPTF is to strictly monitor investment schemes, including real estate projects, especially those marketed to the general public and the families of the OFWs.

Headed by the Department of Finance, the IPTF member agencies are the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the House and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB).

- Among the salient tasks of the IPTF are the following:

- Monitor investment schemes and products;

- Give public warnings on questionable schemes and products;

- File evidence and recommend prosecution to the DOJ; and

- Recommend appropriate legislation and regulations for investor protection.

The President directed the IPTF to consult with the Department of Justice (DOJ) on the status of cases filed at the prosecutor’s office. However, the prosecutors must keep the standard distance from investigators.