Ex-DA chief Arthur Yap, 2 ex-solons face 'pork' raps

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Ombudsman has filed formal charges against former Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, former Nueva Ecija Rep. Rodolfo Antonino and former Isabela Rep. Anthony Miranda for malversation of public funds in connection with the pork barrel fund scam.

The Ombudsman said on Monday that Yap and Antonino, as well National Agribusiness Corporation (NABCOR) officials Alan Javellana, Encarnita Monsod, Rhodore Mendoza and Maria Niñez Guanizo will undergo preliminary investigation over alleged irregular allocation and use of the Priority Development Assistance Funds (PDAF).

Buhay Mo Mahal Ko Foundation president Marilou Antonio and CC Barredo Publishing House general manager Carmelita Barredo are also facing charges of malversation. Both organizations are not linked to pork barrel scam operator Janet Lim Napoles.

Antonino is accused of directing P14.5 million of his PDAF allocation to a "ghost" livelihood project in the 4th district of Nueva Ecija in 2007 through NABCOR, upon the approval of Yap.

"The complaint alleges that the project is inexistent based on on-site validation showing that a number of concerned city and municipal officials attested that their respective local government units did not receive the livelihood sets nor were there records relative thereto," the Ombudsman said in a statement.

Neither the NGO nor Antonino's office submitted a liquidation report or list of actual beneficiaries of the 7.275 livelihood kits purchased from CC Barredo.

"To date, the COA Report categorized the funds as 'unliquidated in full,'" the Ombudsman said.

Own NGO as PDAF recipient

In a separate malversation complaint, Miranda and nine others are also accused for PDAF anomalies.

Miranda himself was allegedly the incorporator of beneficiary non-government organization Aksyon Makamasa Foundation, Inc. which received P21 million of the lawmaker's PDAF through the Technology Resource Center (TRC) as implementing agency.

"Investigation shows that on February 8, 2007, Rep. Miranda requested that the first PDAF of P10 million be released to AMFI, of which Rep. Miranda acted as incorporator, director and chairman," the Ombudsman.

Included in the charge sheet are TRC officials Antonio Ortiz, Dennis Cunanan, Marivic Jover, Belina Concepcion, Francisco Figura, Maria Rosalinda Lacsamana and Consuelo Lilian Reyes Espiritu as well as Domingo Mamauag and Edison Sabio of Aksyon Makamasa.

Ombusdman investigators also filed administrative charges for grave misconduct, serious dishonesty and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service against incumbent officials Cunanan, Jover, Concepcion, Lacsamana and Espiritu.

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales ordered a fact-finding investigation following media reports on the PDAF embezzlement and based further probe on the Commission on Audit Special Report.

The scam involved a total of P6.156 billion worth of PDAF released from 2007 to 2009 by various implementing agencies to 82 non-government organizations, some of which were identified with Napoles.

Both NABCOR and TRC were identified as lead implemening agencies in the scam purportedly carried out by Napoles in earlier plunder and graft cases filed by the Office of the Ombudsman before the Sandiganbayan.

Accused in the Napoles-linked scam are three senators and about 50 others including the same officials from the conduit agencies.