Sotto sees quick adoption of COW report on Philhealth mess
SENATE President Vicente Sotto III is confident the plenary will adopt today (September 7) the Committee of the Whole (COW) report on anomalies in the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (Philhealth), including a proposal to cite Health Secretary Francisco Duque III among those liable for the questionable release of P14.8 billion in Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM) funds during the pandemic even to non-critical health facilities.
In a radio interview with DWIZ over the weekend, Sotto said the COW report will be on Monday’s agenda and, since it was signed by 22 senators, he sees its quick adoption after suggested amendments by about “nine to 10” senators are incorporated.
As for Sen. Panfilo Lacson’s initial reluctance to include Duque among those recommended to be charged, Sotto said Lacson appeared satisfied with the explanation he gave during interpellation last week on the COW report when he reported it out on the floor.
Revised Penal Code “INITIALLY, Lacson felt that the participation [of Duque] was not clear. But after the period of interpellation, we spoke and he saw for himself that, yes, it’s hard to ignore Article 217 [of the Revised Penal Code, on negligence],” Sotto noted, partly in Filipino.
“So from then on, [it was clear that the] chairman of the board cannot claim ignorance of action taken by his agency; that all actions must be known to the board [and] therefore, it is impossible for the chairman of the board not to have known. And the whole agency is under your department as chairman of the board,” Sotto added.
The Senate leader pointed it is clear that under Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code, Duque as Philhealth chairman should have known that the IRM “initially set up to allow health-care institutions [HCIS] to respond right away to public emergencies like the Covid-19 pandemic” was being abused when the Philhealth started releasing billions of pesos even to those facilities that were hardly treating Covid patients.
“That cannot be an excuse because if you use that excuse, you are pleading guilty to the Revised Penal Code Article 217 for negligence. I think they better come up with a better excuse… Impossible. If you insist you didn’t know, then you are pleading guilty to 217. You were negligent,” Sotto stressed.
“Yes, 632 counts of negligence,” he added.
No deletions
MEANWHILE, Sotto does not see his peers deleting portions of the report, but adding to it, during the period of amendments when it is tackled in plenary.
He recalled Minority Leader Franklin M. Drilon’s amendment to recommend an actuarial review by relevant agencies of Philhealth’s financial status. This way, the public will know till when their health insurance costs can be sustained,
Drilon has said.
At the same time, Sotto added, other senators like Cynthia Villar have also indicated intent to introduce other amendments.
“In other words, based on the interpellations on the committee report, 40 percent of which was covered in my sponsorship speech, all the senators had read it. Even before I delivered my sponsorship speech, I sent them copies of the committee report; that is why 22 senators signed. I don’t see any problem in the period of amendments because puro padagdag, walang pa-delete [it will all be additions, no deletions],” the Senate President added.
Asked if he was expecting additional amendments, Sotto replied: “Yes. Correct. I foresee that happening Monday.”
Charges to be filed
SOTTO expects charges to be filed within the year against those found liable in the Senate inquiry.
“Yes. I am expecting that. What some people are saying, about deferring this and focusing only on the pandemic, I don’t buy that. Even before the pandemic, plans for it were being laid down,” he said, adding that since February he and Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III were talking already.
“So, from March up to now, plans were being laid down; only critics say they were no plans; that won’t be disrupted just by changing the agency head.”
To those asking, “’Why are you changing horses in the middle of the race?’ My reply is, I am not changing the horse; I am changing the rider. If you show the horse your direction, it will go there.”