Remitted PhilHealth, PDIC funds used for flood control projects — Carpio

MANILA, Philippines – Funds from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) and the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) were diverted toward the construction of flood control projects, retired Supreme Court senior associate justice Antonio Carpio said.

Carpio explained that a provision in the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA) states that excess funds from government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs) shall be transferred to the Bureau of the Treasury to fund unprogrammed appropriations, which include flood control projects.

The retired justice said such a provision was not included in any other GAA.

PhilHealth and PDIC, both GOCCs, remitted P60 billion and P107 billion, respectively, of their funds in compliance with the directive of the Department of Finance, which issued a circular on how the provision must be implemented.

Calling the provision “unconstitutional,” Carpio said PhilHealth and PDIC’s funds are trust funds that “cannot be used for any other purpose.”

He also noted that under the Constitution, appropriations cannot be transferred. But the president, among other officials, “may, by law, be authorized to augment any item in the general appropriations law for their respective offices from savings in other items of their respective appropriations.”

“[In] Section 5 of the guide rules, once it’s transferred to the national treasury, the certifications constitute authority for DBM (Department of Budget and Management) to release the funds for the unprogrammed appropriation,” Carpio told Rappler on Monday, December 1.

In 2024, unprogrammed appropriations released for flood control projects reached P107 billion.

“It looks like talagang (really) there was an intention to use these excess funds for flood control projects, and we know what flood control projects mean, it is really leakage of funds,” said Carpio.

The retired justice said the mastermind of the scheme should be tracked down and public officials behind it should be held accountable.

“This is a clear case where there was somebody up there thinking of how to get the money kasi (because) this will not happen in isolation, napaka-complicated ito (this is very complicated),” Carpio said. “From the beginning, they intended it this way.”

“Nakakatakot itong taong ito. We should look for this and uncover this person, and hold him to account. He is a genius but genius in stealing the people’s money kasi talagang may architecture ‘yung kanyang ginawa. Hindi ito biglaan lang…. Alam niya ‘yung budgeting process at saka releasing of funds,” the retired justice added.

(This mastermind is frightening. We should look for this and uncover this person, and hold him to account. He is a genius but a genius in stealing the people’s money because there was architecture involved. This was not sudden. He has knowledge of the budgeting process and the releasing of funds.)

Getting back the funds

For Carpio, the PhilHealth and PDIC funds should be restored using money returned by those involved in the flood control scandal.

He said he reached out to Mamamayang Liberal Representative Leila de Lima for a bill on the fund restoration through restitution, or the act of returning unlawfully obtained government money.

In September, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the return of the P60 billion to PhilHealth amid pending petitions on the legality of the state insurer’s fund transfer to the treasury. The DBM then said the fund would be restored through the 2026 national budget.

Carpio argued: “If the reimbursement will come from the General Appropriations Act, ‘yung pera na ‘yan galing sa taxes ng tao. So, parang sinasabi nila, ‘Kayo ang mag-reimburse, kayong taxpayer ang mag-reimburse, hindi ‘yung nagnakaw ng pera.’”

(If the reimbursement will come from the General Appropriations Act, the money will come from the people’s taxes. It’s like they’re saying, “Taxpayers should reimburse the amount, not those who stole from public coffers.”)

Dismissed Bulacan 1st District engineer Henry Alcantara, who was implicated in the flood control corruption, has surrendered P110 million to the government and pledged to return P190 million more from the kickbacks he pocketed.

Former Department of Public Works and Highways undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, meanwhile, committed to return P7 million. – Rappler.com