Insurance chief suspended

MANILA, Philippines — Insurance Commissioner Reynaldo Regalado has been suspended for six months as he faces administrative complaints for allegedly approving the application of an insurance provider in which he previously served as lawyer.

The Office of the Ombudsman issued the order on July 28, placing Regalado under a six-month preventive suspension without pay, according to a statement issued yesterday.

The suspension followed the administrative cases filed against Regalado for grave misconduct, violations of Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees and Republic Act No. 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act.
Regalado was accused of “manifest partiality by approving the accreditation of an insurance consortium despite alleged violations of the Insurance Commission’s own regulations governing the PPAIP accreditation process,” according to the ombudsman, referring to the Personal Passenger Accident Insurance Program for public utility vehicles.

He approved the accreditation “despite questions over its memberships and timely filing of application,” as well as alleged presence of “conflict of interest against Regalado, who previously served as senior counsel with the law firm representing the accredited consortium.”

In addition, he “failed to respond to requests seeking documents related to the accreditation, refused to release records necessary for an appeal and excluded the complainant’s lawyers from a conference with the Insurance Commission.”