Ex-CIIF chief seeks to clear name

Rolando Golez, who resigned as Coconut Industry Investment Fund (CIIF) Oil Mills Group president and chief executive officer over a week ago, wants the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) to investigate allegations of fund misuse against him so that he can clear his name.

"I want to clear my name, I have nothing to hide," he told The STAR in a telephone interview. "My name has been destroyed by the media. I have been tried by the media. It is an expensive fight (with the media)."

Golez resigned after a group of unidentified CIIF Oil Mills employees had accused him of using coco levy funds to pay for lavish perks and privileges.

Golez, a former United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) director, said it was he who first proposed that an independent committee look into the allegations. "As a matter of fact, I was the proponent" of forming a committee to investigate the claims, he said. "It’s okay with me. I want to clear my name because it was destroyed by the media."

The PCGG is set to form a five-man committee tasked to investigate allegations of misuse and lavish spending of coco levy funds against Golez. The five-member committee will be led by PCGG Commissioner William Dichoso, who is in charge of legal affairs. — Sandy Araneta