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| former President Aquino, health secretary Garin, budget secretary Abad / file from Manila Times |
Veteran columnist Rigoberto Tiglao believes that former Aquino
president and some of his Cabinets hijacked the Php10.6 billion funds of the
Filipinos.
The said funds were mandated by law to be allotted for the
insurance premiums of the 7 million senior citizens.
Tiglao said that former President Benigno Aquino III allegedly
connived with his budget secretary, Florencio Abad, and health secretary,
Janette Garin before he stepped down from power.
“This P10.6billion was instead allocated to dubious health
department projects that Congress had not authorized. At best, these projects
were designed to boost the Liberal Party’s candidates’ chances in the 2016
elections, by prettifying the administration’s image as taking care of
citizens’ health needs.” Tiglao wrote on his Opinion column in Manila Times.
“At worst though— and probably their real nature—the
projects were of the type that since the Republic’s founding have been widely
known as a source of facile corruption: construction of small structures
difficult to monitor if they complied with specifications, or even if they were
built at all.” He added.
The alleged hijacking of Php10.6 billion funds were three
times bigger that the Dengvaxia vaccine scandal of the Aquino gang.
Tiglao believes that the Department of Justice should
mobilize a bigger team to investigate the alleged hijacking of funds like what
it is doing with Dengvaxia case.
“that if true, has endangered the Philippine Health
Insurance Corp.’s finances and risked the welfare of the country’s 7 million
senior citizens, the most vulnerable sector of its adult citizenry.” He said.
According to Republic Act 10645 of 2014, all Senior Citizens
will be covered by Philhealth’s health insurance to be funded by the “sin-tax” –
a law that increases levies on liquor and tobacco, in which a bigger percentage
will be allocated for the National Health Insurance Program intended for the
seniors.
Source: Manila Times
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