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MANILA, Philippines – Health Secretary Francisco Duque III has joined the list of “corrupt and incompetent untouchables” under the Duterte administration, Senator Francis Pangilinan said Tuesday.
“That Duque goes unpunished is no longer surprising,” Pangilinan said in a message to reporters.
According to the senator, Duque is in the league of the former head of the Customs Bureau (BOC) and the Bureau of Corrections Nicanor Faeldon, former BOC commissioner Isidro Lapeña, former National Food Authority Jason Aquino and former head of the Philippine National Police Oscar Albayalde, who have all been involved in alleged irregularities in their respective agencies in the past.
And now, Duke at PhilHealth. The list of corrupt and incompetent untouchables under this Administration is getting longer, ”said Pangilinan. “Condoning corruption, illegality and incompetence will only lead to more corruption and incompetence.”
Previously, the multi-agency task force created to investigate Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) recommended the filing of charges against former CEO Ricardo Morales and several other officials for alleged anomalies at the state insurer.
But the charges against Duque, whom the Senate Committee of the Whole wants to sue for the “illegal” release of billions of funds through PhilHealth’s interim refund mechanism (IRM), was not included in the group’s recommendation. led by the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Duque, who serves as ex-officio chairman of the PhilHealth board, has already dismissed the Senate committee’s findings as “unfounded.”
The health chief said he was involved with the distribution of funds from the MRI when “he was not even part of the deliberation and did not sign the aforementioned resolution” that authorized it.
President Rodrigo Duterte, meanwhile, has expressed his continued trust and confidence in Duque despite the accusations against him.
Meanwhile, Senator Sonny Angara thanked the president and the Justice Department-led task force “for acting swiftly” in investigating alleged anomalies within PhilHealth.
“[We] We hope that law enforcement and government prosecutors will take control and move these cases forward to hold those involved accountable, ”Angara said in a separate message.
“Both the legislative and executive branches of the government have found reasons to persecute these individuals. Hopefully the other government agencies can now act with the same sense of urgency here, “he added.
EDV
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