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The Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) endorsed Dante Gierran’s appointment as chairman and chief executive officer of Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) on Tuesday, saying he had a clean record in government.
The president of the PACC, Dante Jiménez, endorsed Gierran’s integrity and said that the former director of the National Investigation Office (NBI) “comes at a critical moment when the integrity of the national government agencies is questioned.”
Atty. Gierran, being an accountant himself, kept himself clean as a public servant, even when he professionalized his men and women while he was director of the NBI, ”Jiménez told The Manila Times.
He said Gierran received several awards, including the recognition of Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC), of which Jiménez served as founding president.
“We will need all strength to combat these formidable ‘viruses’ in the form of crime, corruption and illegal drugs, which still persist and continue to victimize our people, especially the poor,” said Jiménez.
“Time is of the essence, as the government needs to make the most of the remaining two years after the president’s term ends in 2022,” he added.
Jiménez said that government agencies need to close ranks for the government to win the war against anarchy and corruption.
“With fewer resources due to this health crisis, the fight has become more difficult. We need the full commitment and cooperation of everyone in the ‘whole nation’ approach to fulfill the Duterte Administration’s program of change in the country, ”he said.
‘Corruption pandemic’
VACC President Arsenio “Boy” Evangelista also expressed his support for Gierran, saying PhilHealth “needs a man with principles, integrity, ability and courage.”
“He is a quiet but very effective worker, and the rogues left at PhilHealth will soon feel Dante Gierran’s resolve and determination,” he added.
Evangelista said there was a “corruption pandemic” at PhilHealth.
In 2007, he said that Dr. Madeleine Valera, PhilHealth’s vice president for health financial policy, revealed that since 1995, the agency lost up to P4 billion due to fraudulent claims.
“PhilHealth was also the epicenter of a scandal diverting P10.6 billion funds to fund a failed barangay-based health center construction program. The plan was to enroll families in PhilHealth at P1,200 per family member, funded by PhilHealth and the Philippines Office of Charity Giveaways, ”Evangelista said.
In 2012, he said there was a premium payment diversion of approximately P114 million, “a robbery made possible by PhilHealth employees’ alleged collusion with a syndicated criminal group.”
PhilHealth was rocked by a scandal called a “cataract scam” in 2014, in connection with claims of P2 billion for cataract operations.
In 2018, more than 757,000 people fell ill with pneumonia, according to statements by hospitals.
In June 2019, another scam was discovered: the payment of premiums for non-existent dialysis sessions.
“It is inconceivable that our government is losing tens of billions to greed and corruption as the poorest of our poor patients continue to wither and die without adequate medical care during this terrible pandemic,” Evangelista said.
These losses could have been avoided if the responsible PhilHealth officials had faithfully and diligently fulfilled their duty to develop and implement the information technology systems necessary to prevent fraud, he said.
