CORRUPTION CLAIMS | Two weeks since exposé, Pacquiao formally seeks Senate probe into P10.4B cash aid distribution

July 15, 2021 , 09:25 PM

By Beatrice Puente, News5 Digital

(July 15, 2021) – Senator and boxing icon Emmanuel “Pacman” Pacquiao on Thursday asked the upper chamber of Congress to open an inquiry into the alleged corruption in the P10.4-billion cash aid distribution he had exposed two weeks ago, setting into motion his bid to go after alleged corrupt agencies in the government.

Pacquiao, a pro-administration lawmaker, brought up the “anomalous” transaction in the social welfare department after it hired a third-party electronic money issuer in the distribution of cash assistance to help poor sectors affected by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Starpay, an e-wallet service provider, was supposed to distribute P14 billion worth of public funds to around 1.8 million beneficiaries, but only 500,000 people were able to download the application, according to Pacquiao. He said recipients won’t be able to receive the cash aid without downloading the app.

“There is an urgent need to look into this anomaly to untangle the web of corruption involving [the] DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) and Starpay which has robbed our people of economic resources,” Pacquiao wrote in Proposed Senate Resolution 779.

“[It] denuded the government of its basic capacity to provide a lifeline to the vulnerable segment of the society that has been hit the hardest by the current pandemic.”

In an earlier statement, the DSWD denied there are missing funds, saying it had liquidation reports to support their claims.

DSWD also vowed to cooperate in any investigation in Congress because it has nothing to hide.

“The agency assures that the processes adopted by (financial service providers) on payouts are in accordance with BSP-approved processes and existing government accounting rules and procedures,” the DSWD earlier said.

Starpay, for its part, also refuted Pacquiao’s accusation of corruption because it also had offline mechanisms through which beneficiaries can avail of their benefits. It said the company only covered 1.6 million beneficiaries, lower than the estimates provided by the senator.

In addition, the company also said it returned P8.2 billion to the DSWD after liquidating its total unreleased funds.

“With our large partner network, we were able to expand and assist several million more beneficiaries to receive their much-needed amelioration,” Starpay said.

“This was achieved because of our unique online and offline distribution model, where beneficiaries without smartphones were given reference numbers to claim their amelioration at their own time and convenience.”

Pacquiao also dragged three other agencies in his corruption claims—the Department of Health, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. It remains unclear when he will seek an investigation into the alleged corruption in these agencies.

He exposed these corruption allegations before leaving for the United States on July 3, appearing before the media with thick stacks of paper on top of his table. Pacquiao did not provide a copy of these documents to the media pending verification.

But President Rodrigo Duterte, who challenged him to provide proof of the corruption in government, played down the revelation of the senator, calling him “punch-drunk” for saying the government lost P10 billion in cash aid funds.

“Papayag ba naman ako? Papayag ba kami? May secretary ng mga department na may mawala na P10 billion,” Duterte said earlier this week. “That is a statement coming from a guy that is punch-drunk, lasing.”

(MM)

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