President Duterte reminds Mayor Richard Gomez: There’s no reason not to accept returning OFWs to Ormoc

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May 30, 2020 4:51 am

President Rodrigo Duterte reminded Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez to respect the right of the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who wanted to go back to Ormoc City after being stranded in Metro Manila for weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his televised speech on May 28, the chief executive said that he understood the reaction of Gomez, who’s also his political ally.

Still, the latter should also remember that the OFWs have the constitutional right to travel back home.

“I do not have a quarrel with Richard Gomez. He was the one who said that he’s not going to accept anybody from entering, or for that matter, leaving the place,” the President said, reacting to the Mayor’s criticism over the Balik Probinsiya program of the government.

“Okay man lang ‘yan. It’s part of maybe the vigilance that a person nurtures in his heart of how to do it. But you know there are also constitutional issues involved and those are sacred ones,” he added.

According to Duterte, there’s no reason for Gomez “not to accept” the OFWs proven free from COVID-19 and reiterated that the national government is ready to shoulder the medical expenses of the positive Balik Probinsiya beneficiaries.

“And for those who are not really pronounced to be infected positive, there’s no reason why you should not accept them especially those who are returning to their homes from doing work abroad,” he said.

“Kawawa naman kasi. So ‘yung constitutional right, there’s no — there’s no really a reason why you should not accept them with open arms. I think this has been understood by everybody. And — unless, well for one, if you are positive, you can stay with the place where government has to provide for the hospitalization,” he added.

Duterte then also urged the other Mayors, to help everybody.

“That is really an order of the national government to the local governments. Help, do not deny, and you must expedite the hospitalization until he is cured. No problem about payment. I will pay. Just bill me and I will pay,” he stated.

A few days ago, Mayor Gomez slammed different agencies of the national government for allegedly ordering them to disregard health protocols for the people returning to Ormic via Balik Probinsiya Program.

“DILG, NHA, OWWA, what happened to all the protocols that you guys are trying to formulate for returning residents?!!!” Gomez wrote.

“I just would like to share what is happening right now about this Balik Probinsya program. This morning the DILG regional office and OWWA texted, “texted”, us informing us that there are 3 planes arriving in Tacloban and telling us to receive them without following COVID protocols, undocumented and untested,” he added.

Gomez said that they’re working hard to maintain Ormoc City COVID-19 free “for 70 days” only to be told to accept repatriates without any conditions.

“What happened to all the protocols that we’ve been working on? What happened their protocols that they have been telling us to do if they themselves are not doing the right thing?!” he said.

The Mayor also denied that he doesn’t want to accept the returning OFWs, saying that he only wanted coordination from the national government so they could prepare the right amount of medical team and vehicle to accommodate the repatriates.

“Kailangan namin malaman Sana in advance para tama yung laki ng sasakyan na magsusundo, may mga medical team na nakahanda etc. Hindi kasi yung ofws lang ang naguuwian, may balik probinsya program din, at may mga biglang nasa border na na gusto rin pumasok,” he said.

Mystica to hire the ‘best lawyers’ to counter the charges filed by Arnell Ignacio against her

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May 29, 2020 4:18 am

Mystica said that she’s ready to counter the lawsuit filed against her by former Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Deputy Administrator Arnell Ignacio.

Mystica in her Facebook post announced that she’s looking for the ‘best lawyer’ to help her file eight charges against the former government official.

“Wanted ASAP! I need the best lawyer to represent my 8 cases against Arnell Ignacio!—Mystica” she said.

She also criticized Ignacio in one of her live streams, denying that she urged the people to force President Duterte to step down.

“Kung inciting to sedition ang aking kasalanan ngayon, why sedition ba ang ginagawa ni Vice President Leni Robredo at that time? Sedition ba na kinakailangan ay mag incite din ako kung ano ang ginagawa niya, para sabihing sedition… inciting?” Mystica said.

“Kaya ikaw Arnell, bago ka gumawa ng kag*guhan, kayabangan, tignan mo muna pati ‘yung description basahin mo and obviously you didn’t listen to the whole video,” she added.

Mystica also stated that Ignacio gave her more problems because she’s required to spend money to defend herself from the three charges filed against her.

However, in a radio interview, Mystica claimed that she has millions of pesos to spend in her upcoming legal battle against Ignacio.

“Wala na ngang makain ang mga katulad namin, nagdagdag ka pa ng problema para makapaghanap kami sa lawyer, at pambayad ng kung anong pampiyansa,” she said.

She then asked Presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo to inform Duterte of what’s happening to her.

“Ipakita mo ‘yung mga videos, mula nung ako ay sumuporta sa kanya, from the start of his term, wala akong ginawa ipaglaban siya, suportahan siya, minsan napakapagmura,” she told Panelo.

Ignacio filed three charges against Mystica for cyber libel, violation of Bayanihan To Heal as One Act, and inciting to sedition.

“Kapag seryoso ang issue e file na ko ng case. Hindi talakan lang sa fb. Hindi mo puede muramurahin si presidente nang ganun ganun lang at aatungal ka pagkatapos ..mas malala nagyaya ka pa na pabagsakin ang gobyerno imbis na tumulong ka na lang,” Ignacio said.

“Yung pagmumura mo naman e parang PERSONAL ang kasalanan sa iyo e. Kahit man lang sana sa edad nung tao e binigay mo na kahit katiting na pag galang,” he added.

Mystica became infamous on social media after she made vlogs against President Duterte, calling him a leader “with no common sense”.

“Sumasang-ayon na talaga ako kung ano yung mga prinsipyo ni Vice President Leni (Robredo). Dati rati, never ako nagbanggit about Leni Robredo. But right now sumusuporta na ako sa kanila. All the way. Sumusuporta ako sa kanila,” she said.

“Kaya kung sino ang sumusuporta kay Vice President Leni Robredo, let’s get out there and be in full foce, labanan natin itong gobyerno na ito, lalong lalo na ang ating Presidente,” she added.

Francis Leo Marcos gives more details about his life inside his cell at NBI detention center

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May 28, 2020 3:53 pm

Norman Mangusin, better known as Francis Leo Marcos for the first time since he was detained because of multiple charges was seen again by his fans on social media, thanks to a Facebook page dedicated to the self-proclaimed businessman.

Facebook page ‘Tiktik’ posted a video of Marcos talking to the agents of NBI about his past and how he changed his name from Norman Mangusin to his now popular alias.

Marcos admitted that he’s Norman Mangusin name since grade 5 and grew up with his father Gilbert Mangusin.

However, he denied that he’s the one who changed his name to Francis Leo Marcos and mentioned again his mother.

“Ang hindi ko lang maintindihan sir is ‘yung Norman Mangusin ay hanggang grade 5 ko gamit… gamit ko talaga, kaya hindi ko ma-deny lumaki akong tatay ko si Gilbert Mangusin,” Marcos said.

“Pero ‘nong 17 na ako ay nanay ko naman ang nagpalit ng pangalan ko, hindi naman ako,” he added.

Gilbert Mangusin was mentioned by internet figure Xian Gaza on April 2 when he accused Marcos of using a fake identity to escape several lawsuits filed under his name Norman Mangusin.

Gaza claimed that Marcos paid a judge and two National Statistics Office officials to change his name, however, NBI is still not confirming if the information shared by the former is legitimate.

On May 10, investigative journalist Manuel Mejorada mentioned Gilbert Mangusin in his blog, together with a certain Remedios Antonio who’s being rumored to be the mother of Marcos.

Francis Leo on his past social media posts claimed that his father was Dr. Pacifico Marcos, the younger brother of former President Ferdinand Marcos.

Several members of the Marcos-Romualdez clan then started to disown the internet celebrity.

Photo: https://www.facebook.com/francisleomarcos202020/posts/1287380228077028

The businessman then started to talk about his connection with the Marcos clan of Ilocos.

“If you ask me ‘how you are related to the first family?’ I’ll just simply said, it is a ‘PRIVILEGE COMMUNICATION’, but I have not the liberty to divulge any information pertaining to the first family,” Marcos said in his past video.

Yesterday, NBI said that Marcos might face serious legal trouble as he’s accusing of multiple counts of human trafficking and other cases that punishable by reclusión perpetua

As of writing, the camp of Marcos is still not giving any statement.

Sa Bilibid ang bagsak? Francis Leo Marcos faces another case that may put him in cell for life

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May 28, 2020 3:36 am

Norman Mangusin, better known as Francis Leo Marcos may lose his freedom for good as the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) revealed that the self-proclaimed businessman and philanthropist is facing a very serious accusation.

Yesterday, journalist Erwin Tulfo read the email sent to him by NBI, telling him that Marcos was also being accused of illegal recruitment, land grabbing, and r@pe.

During Tulfo’s interview with Vic Lorenzo of the NBI Cybercrime Division, the latter denied that Marcos already gained his freedom.

According to him, Marcos was still detained at the NBI office because they already confirmed that the latter was facing human trafficking charges, which made it impossible for him to post bail.

Lorenzo also gave more details about the said illegal activity of Marcos who allegedly promised a job in Europe to his victims.

“Ang naging modus nila, magre-recruit sila ng mga babae, tapos aabusuhin nila, paghuhubarin nila to the point na ano na.. r@pe na sir, tapos papadala nila doon sa ibang bansa, akala noong mga na recruit nila sir na magta-trabaho sila pero gagawin lang silang slave,” Lorenzo said.

“Kaya siya na file-an sir ay dahil nakatakas ‘yung mga babae, nakauwi ng Pilipinas, so nag file sila nag complaint dito, so nakasuhan si Norman Mangusin kaya lumabas ‘yung warrant,” he added.

He said that six people filed a complaint against Marcos for human trafficking.

Marcos is also facing charges for spreading ‘fake news’ during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“May mga fake news niya, ‘yung sinasabi niya sa mga blogs niya, sa mga videos niya na ang mga mayayaman, ang mga instutition, hindi tumutulong in this time of pandemic, lockdown pero hindi naman totoo ‘yun sir diba,” Lorenzo said.

On May 19, Marcos was put under the custody of NBI because of a violation against Optometry Law, he was expected to post bail during that day.

However, NBI found multiple cases under his name Norman Mangusin, and also to his alias Francis Leo Marcos, including human trafficking which is a non-bailable case.

They also discovered that the properties flaunted by Marcos in his vlogs were not owned by him.

Sen. Dela Rosa defends his ‘sarap ng buhay’ remark: “Bakit kailangan nilang i-take it out of context?”

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May 28, 2020 12:36 am

Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa defended his ‘sarap ng buhay’ remark on May 26, saying that he couldn’t understand why it was taken out of context.

In an interview with Radyo Pilipinas, Dela Rosa asked if there’s no right for them to be happy in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to him, he’s just happy that their session was finished earlier.

“Kapag tayo ba ay nasa krisis ay wala na tayong karapatan pagaanin ‘yung buhay natin? Na puro pahirap nalang? Kaya lang ako nag comment ng ganoon ay dahil masaya ako dahil nga ‘yung aming session ay mabilis, at maagang natapos ang aming session kaya sinabi ko ‘ang sarap ng buhay’,” Dela Rosa said.

“Kasi ‘yung ibang session namin diyan aabot ng alas otso, alas nuebe o alas dose ng gabi eh, minsan aabutin kami ng madaling araw, pero kahapon mabilis na tinalakay ‘yung mga bills,” he added.

Dela Rosa denied that he’s comparing his life to the normal people affected by the pandemic.

“Ang layo masyado, ‘yung mga tao diyan na nag-rereact, mga bitter ‘yan gusto lang maghanap ng sama ng buhay, sarap nga ng buhay, natapos kami ng maaga, bakit kailangan nilang i taken out of context?” he stated.

He also clarified that he made the ‘sarap ng buhay’ remark after the session as personal greetings.

Dela Rosa also gave advice to the people who criticized him.

“Eto ang advice ko doon sa mga nega, sa mga taong bitter, ang buhay natin sa mundo ay napakaiksi, kahit na nasa pandemic tayo ay mag hanap tayo ng paraan para lumigaya, dahil hindi natin alam kung hanggang saan ang buhay natin,” he said.

“Hanap ka ng paraan, kung pwede nating pasayahin ang sarili natin ang ating buhay dahil sa mababaw na bagay lang, edi pasayahin natin, hindi yung magmukmuk lang tayo at masama ang loob,” he added.

The Senator insisted that he’s not insensitive, and only those people waiting for him to say something controversial are trying to push the issue.

“Yan ang gusto nilang mangyari, ang gawan ka lang ng issue, hindi naman ‘yun para sa kanila, para ‘yun sa aking mga kasama, hindi naman ‘yan kailangan ibalita, wala na ba silang ibang mabalita?” he said.

As a repercussion to what Dela Rosa said, Senate President Tito Sotto ordered the former to attend the Senate session physically starting June 1.

Proud to be contractual! DJ Chacha says that she’s not a regular employee of ABS-CBN for 12 years but receiving benefits

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May 27, 2020 10:37 pm

Czarina Balba who’s better known as ‘DJ Chacha’ defended her company ABS-CBN saying that contractual employees of the Kapamilya network are still receiving benefits like regular workers.

Chacha was reacting to the speech of Deputy Speaker Rodante Marcoleta on Tuesday who claimed that ABS-CBN ignored the rights of its workers, saying that 8,500 out of 11,000 people serving the Kapamilya network are contractual or talents.

“ABS-CBN has not regularized its contractual workers and talents despite performing the functions of regular workers,” he said.

“Hindi po maikakaila sa publiko na napakarami ng labor cases na hinarap at haharapin pa ng ABS-CBN. Ang masaklap pa dito, ni hindi nagbibigay ang ABS-CBN ng contribution sa benefits,” he added.

However, Chacha called the claims of Marcoleta as ‘fake news’ and proudly announced that she’s working as a contractual employee in ABS-CBN for 12 years, but receiving SSS and Philhealth.

“Hay. Fake news ng sobra. Sana nag-research. Mag-12 years na akong Talent/Contractual sa ABSCBN at may SSS, Philhealth, etc. May health card rin pati pamilya ko libre. Pinagsasabi mo, Ser?” Chacha tweeted.

Hay. Fake news ng sobra. Sana nag-research. Mag-12 years na akong Talent/Contractual sa ABSCBN at may SSS, Philhealth, etc. May health card rin pati pamilya ko libre. Pinagsasabi mo, Ser?

— DJ Chacha (@mor1019chacha) May 26, 2020

In another tweet, Chacha said that she’s receiving Christmas and midyear bonus unlike other companies hiring contractual employees.

“Hindi ko need ipaglaban kasi kumpleto benepisyo ko. Talent kasi kami, three hours lang nagstay sa opisina. Hindi kami walong oras. Pero kumpleto benepisyo with Christmas & Midyear bonus. Oh ayan may pang-lunch ka na troll!” she said.

The DJ also pointed out that there’s a benefit of being contractual than being a regular DJ like some of her colleagues.

“Bakit ko ilalaban eh kapag talent ka after ng program mo libre ka na rumaket sa labas! Diba ang bongga? Contractual pero kumpleto benefits. Kayo bang mga troll may SSS, Pag ibig, etc?” Chacha remarked.

She also made fun of Marcoleta and compared his speech to a ‘school presentation’.

“Si Marcoleta, naalala ko yung Tito kong pag lasing na kung anu-ano tinatalak makapagpa-bida lang,” she said.

Si Marcoleta, naalala ko yung Tito kong pag lasing na kung anu-ano tinatalak makapagpa-bida lang.

— DJ Chacha (@mor1019chacha) May 26, 2020

“Ano ba to’ school presentation? Susko! Kadiri. Ganito pinapasweldo ng tax natin?” she added.

Ano ba to’ school presentation? Susko! Kadiri. Ganito pinapasweldo ng tax natin?

— DJ Chacha (@mor1019chacha) May 26, 2020

Mas malaki pa binayaran ng GMA? Lawmaker reveals alleged tax avoidance scheme ng ABS-CBN

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May 27, 2020 3:34 pm

Deputy Speaker Rondate Marcoleta accused ABS-CBN of tax evasion during the house hearing on the franchise issue of the television network giant.

Marcoleta who has gone viral on social media because of his revelations claimed that GMA-7, a media company smaller than ABS-CBN paid a bigger tax in 2018, while ABS-CBN declared a negative income tax.

According to him, that Kapamilya network allegedly evaded tax by using its subsidiary, Big Dipper Inc as a tax shield, because it enjoyed the benefit of being a company registered at the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

“ABS-CBN also violated the terms and conditions of its franchise by engaging in tax avoidance schemes which deprived the government of the much-needed revenue,” said Marcoleta.

Marcoleta comparing the tax paid by GMA-7 and ABS-CBN in the past three years.

“It used its fully owned subsidiary, Big Deeper Digital Content and Design Inc., a PEZA registered company as a tax shield. Its main customer is ABS-CBN Hungary. And because of this tax avoidance scheme, ABS-CBN alleged effective tax rate in 2018 was at a negative 5 percent. This means that ABS-CBN manages to avoid paying taxes in 2018, ” he added.

He then compared GMA-7 to ABS-CBN, asking why a bigger company like ABS-CBN is paying less tax than its rival network.

Marcoleta said that it turned out that the government owes ABS-CBN in 2018 because it declared a negative 84-M income tax.

“Bakit ang GMA 7 na hindi kasing laki o kasing yaman ng ABS-CBN ay nakapagbayad ng buwis sa pamahalaan ng P1.6 billion noong 2018. Samanatalang ang ABS-CBN ay walang binayarang buwis. Bakit naman nakalibre ang ABS-CBN noong 2018 sa negative income tax nila na 84 million. Ibig sabihin nito ay may tax credit ang ABS-CBN at gobyerno pa ang lumalabas na may utang dito. Wala po itong pagkakaiba sa isang taong umutang sa tindahan at binigyan pa ng sukli,”

This is not the first time that someone mentioned the alleged tax evasion activities of ABS-CBN.

Two weeks ago, Willie Ramasola posted several documents showing ABS-CBN allegedly paid negative income tax in 2018.

One of GMA-7 top official Anette Gozon-Valdes even commented on Ramasola’s post, joking if their company could copy the technique of ABS-CBN.

“Oh baka GMA can copy this too to avoid paying taxes hehe,” Gozon said.

“Seriously though. Maybe you have some auditor fb friends that can give their opinion? Pasado naman kasi ang scheme na ito sa auditor nila,” she added.

Meanwhile, a tax expert said that the tax evasion accusation against ABS-CBN is unfair.

“Whether this subsidiary is legitimate or not, we have the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Whether ABS-CBN paid all the taxes or not, (The Bureau of Internal Revenue) BIR is checking on ABS-CBN every year,” Founding chairman of the Asian Consulting Group Mon Abrea said.

He also called the post of Ramasola as misleading.

“None of these large taxpayers can ever have a negative tax rate, because they are all subject to withholding taxes. It’s like the situation of the employee (wherein) before they receive their salaries it’s already net of taxes,” he said.

He also has a reminder to people accusing ABS-CBN of evading tax.

“Tax avoidance is not illegal. Having a foreign subsidiary is not illegal. And there’s nothing immoral about it other than us putting malice or crucifying (ABS-CBN) just because we don’t like these people.” he also said.

Coco Martin losing endorsement because of his social media posts against the critics of ABS-CBN – columnist

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May 27, 2020 12:52 am

ABS-CBN top actor Coco Martin was reportedly losing some opportunities to earn some money, a columnist claims.

In the article, Abante columnist Ambet Nabus said that the social media posts of Martin against his critics affected his endorsements.

“Meron pa nga kaming narinig na meron umano itong mga on-going endorsements at supposedly “big summer product launch,” na nauwi sa wala at mauuwi sa wala dahil mismong mga kliyente nito ang grabeng na-turn off sa ginawi ng akor na in fairness naman ay humingi ng apology,” Nabus wrote.

Nabus added that the camp of Coco Martin is trying to restore the image and popularity of the actor after his social media rants.

The ‘Ang Probinsiyano’ leading star became one of the top endorsers in the country because of his popularity on television.

It was reported that he already has a net worth of $20-M.

A few weeks ago, Martin’s social media post, defending ABS-CBN and criticizing the people behind the closure of his home network has gone viral on social media.

At one point, Martin even urged the critics of ABS-CBN to avoid watching his show ‘Ang Probinsiyano’ once they fix the franchise issue of Kapamilya network.

“Tama na wag kana umiyak babalik kami sadyang may mga Demonyo lang talaga na tao ngayon na gusto tanggalan ng kaligayanhan ang mga tao at ng hanap buhay na pinagkukunan ng kanilang kakainin sa araw araw!” Martin said.

“Pag balik namin pag sasapakin ko lahat ng tuwang tuwa ngayon na sarado na ang ABS CBN!!” he added.

Martin was also criticized by the netizens after he expressed concern about where to get the food for his family in the future as ABS-CBN was already forced to shut down.

“Wala na akong trabaho eh, anong ipapakain ko sa pamilya ko? Kapag ang pamilya ko ay kinanti, kahit sino ka pa, lalaban ako ng p*tayan sayo, kahit na pat*yin mo pa ako!” he said.

The social media posts of Coco Martin only ended two weeks ago on Mother’s Day.

Source: [1]

Netizen says that Congressman Marcoleta’s speech against ABS-CBN is one of the ‘greatest moments’ in Congress’ history

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May 26, 2020 3:43 pm

A netizen praised the congressman who claimed that ABS-CBN did not comply with the terms and conditions of its franchise and even used the ‘Bawal Lumabas’ line of Kim Chiu in his speech.

Jun Abines, in a Facebook post, expressed amazement over the speech of House of the Representatives Deputy Speaker Dante Marcoleta against the Kapamilya network, calling the speech of the lawmaker as “probably the greatest moments that happened inside the halls of Congress in the last 30 years”.

According to him, he already lost interest in watching the ABS-CBN franchise house hearing at first after he saw that the officials of ABS-CBN played a video to point out the contribution of the Kapamilya network to the country.

Abines called the said part as a ‘circus’ but he suddenly became interested again in watching the hearing after Marcoleta started to talk about the alleged violations of ABS-CBN.

“After few minutes, I was again being led by facebook to watch a live broadcast of the hearing. I reluctantly watched again knowing that a circus is still on going. I was wrong! What I saw was probably the greatest moments that happened inside the halls of Congress in the last 30 years. Congressman Marcoleta narrated the sins of ABS-CBN for several minutes. He did it like an eye witness of a crime telling how it all happened. I watched sitting on the edge of my seat!” Abines said.

“I was caught off guard. I never expected some good souls still exists among our congressmen. Deputy speaker Dante Marcoleta spoke with conviction, with clarity and with the heart of a true nationalist. It was like having a dream. It’s like seeing a very bright light shine inside the hall and expose the true faces of every congressmen. The few goods and majority of evils,” he added.

“ABS-CBN was dismantled, destroyed and obliterated in just about 10 minutes! Hard facts and truths delivered right on their faces!” he also said.

Abines’ amazement even reached to the point that he believes that Marcoleta would win a senatorial election.

“Its like seeing Mayor Duterte back in 2013 when he got interviewed by the media after Yolanda. It was the day when Duterte’s star shined for all the world to see,” he said.

On Monday, the lawmakers started to discuss the franchise issue of ABS-CBN.

Marcoleta claimed that ABS-CBN allegedly ignored the rights of their 11,000 employees, claiming that only 2,661 of them are receiving government-mandated benefits.

He also criticized ABS-CBN for its use of ‘multiple channels’ using the same franchise via TV Plus.

The lawmaker also alleged that ABS-CBN didn’t follow the constitutional restrictions on foreign ownership and even pointed out that the Chairman Emeritus of Kapamilya network, Eugenio Lopez III only got his Filipino citizenship in 2002.

Totoo ba o haka haka? President Duterte talks about the couple selling ‘overpriced’ COVID-19 equipment

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May 25, 2020 4:35 pm

President Rodrigo Duterte revealed the couple who kept being mentioned by public officials for allegedly selling overpriced equipment for COVID-19.

During the IATF-EID meeting on Monday, Duterte asked Health Secretary Francisco Duque III if the rumors about the ‘couple’ who owns a company are selling overpriced equipment to the government.

Former Health Secretary and now Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin exposed the couple and asked the President to investigate them for selling automated coronavirus testing machines for three times the manufacturers’ price. She also accused a couple of hoarding.

Budget Undersecretary Lloyd Lao informed the President that the Co couple owned the Omnibus Bio-Medical Systems Incorporated.

According to Lao, Omnibus Corporation approached them and offered equipment manufactured by Sansure Biotech for more than 4-M pesos.

Senator Panfilo Lacson said that if you bought the same equipment straight to the manufacturer, it would only cost 1.7-M pesos.

Lao said that Omnibus lost the bidding against a foreign corporation offering the same equipment from Sansure.

He claimed that after losing the bid, Omnibus complained about why the government would not get equipment from them despite being the ‘exclusive’ distributor of Sansure equipment in the Philippines.

Sansure officials went to the Philippines after hearing the issue which gave the government a chance to ask them to buy directly from them instead of having transactions with Omnibus.

“They’re willing to forego of Omnibus, they’re actually negotiating that because they have a relationship with Omnibus, can they use it as distributor, and they’re willing to reduce the price,” Lao said.

“But I made a statement, that we are no longer willing to discuss with Sansure if they go through Omnibus because they were given a chance before when the government really needed it and they gave us a very high price,” he added.

Lao said that they’re going to ‘reward’ Omnibus if the government decide to deal with them despite what happened in the past.

“They should have paid for what they have done before, kasi gipit na gipit tayo, hindi tayo makalipad kasi mayroon tayong mga restrictions and all, they’re the only ones who are connected with Sansure and they’re selling at least not less than double the price, and you cannot get it unless you pass throught them,” he said.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque then said that there’s a law against profiteering and taking advantage of a national emergency.

“Baka po talagang may basis para imbestigahan itong Co couple ng NBI for profiteering and hoarding under the special law on anti-profiteering and under Bayanihan act,” Roque said.

Duterte then advised the NBI to investigate the Co couple “very carefully”.

“Alam mo itong mga p****** *nang negosyante na ito, whether it is really an issue of humanity and the greed, ‘yung hoarding na ‘yan you cannot… it’s part of the business practices which you may call not even obnoxious it’s repulsive to the human mind, when you start to think about it,” Duterte said.

“But let’s look at it what it is legally sans the maybe ‘yung mga suspicion after all, its not easy to charge a person… if NBI finds a probably cause then go ahead,” he added.