Minister denies pandemic funds were stolen

THE Philippine health minister, facing questions over more than Us$1bil (Rm4.2bil) in Covid-19 spending, has denied that any money was “stolen”, as his department vowed to account for every peso.

The country is battling one of Asia’s worst coronavirus outbreaks and the spread of the virulent Delta variant is overwhelming hospitals and healthcare workers, some of which have warned of mass resignations over unpaid allowances.

“You will be assured that no money went into corruption. None was stolen. I am sure of that,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque told DZMM radio yesterday.

The state auditor has flagged “deficiencies” involving Us$1.33bil, casting doubts on the regularity of related transactions in the country’s pandemic response.

The health ministry said it would submit its explanation, including required documents, to the state auditor next week, ahead of a Sept 27 deadline.

The Philippines recorded 14,249 new Covid-19 infections yesterday, its second-biggest daily increase, and 233 additional deaths.

The positivity rate was a record high, with a quarter of the nearly 53,000 people tested confirmed positive.

With more than 1.71 million infections and 29,838 deaths, the Philippines has the secondhighest Covid-19 cases and fatalities in South-east Asia, next to Indonesia.

The Manila capital region, an urban sprawl of 16 cities that is home to more than 13 million people, remains under a strict lockdown to contain the spread of the Delta variant.