Ex-Pagcor chief draws 10 years for P37 million graft

MANILA, Philippines — Former Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chairman Efraim Genuino and two other former officials have been sentenced to a maximum prison term of 10 years after the Sandiganbayan found them guilty of anomalous fund disbursements totaling P37 million.?

The Sandiganbayan’s Third Division found Genuino, former Pagcor president and chief operating officer Rafael Francisco and former Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman William Ramirez guilty of violating Republic Act 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

Their conviction was in relation to one of two cases filed by the Office of the Ombudsman in 2016, alleging the release of P37,063,488.21 in Pagcor funds to the Philippine Amateur Swimming Association Inc. (PASA), a private organization, between April 2007 and August 2009 without the approval of the Pagcor board of directors.

While the fund was intended for the training of swimmers competing in the 2012 London Olympics, the ombudsman said that it should not have been directly given to PASA but to the PSC to form part of its National Sports Development Fund as provided by law.?Section 3 (e) of RA 3019 prohibits a public official from giving unwarranted benefit, advantage or preference to a private party or from causing any party, including the government, undue injury.

In convicting Genuino, Francisco and Ramirez of violation of Section 3 (e) of RA 3019, the Third Division said the prosecution was able to prove that they acted in bad faith in giving unwarranted benefit to PASA by “directly remitting” to the latter the PSC’s share in Pagcor’s income.

Furthermore, the ombudsman said that the Trace Aquatic Center, a sports facility leased by PASA for the swimming training program of the athletes, was owned by Genuino and his family.

The court said that because of the act of Genuino and his two co-accused, PASA was given an assured sum of money every month for more than a year while other sports associations and athletes had to go through certain processes to get funding or support from the PSC.

Apart from a jail term not less than six years, Genuino, Francisco and Ramirez were also ordered by the graft court’s Third Division to be perpetually disqualified from holding public office.

On the other hand, the Sandiganbayan acquitted two others accused in the same case – Pagcor’s former senior vice president for corporate communications and services Edward King and former assistant vice president for internal audit Valente Custodio – “for failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.”

Still on Pagcor fund disbursements to the PASA, the Third Division dismissed the cases against former Pagcor executive vice-president Rene Figueroa, citing a Supreme Court decision promulgated on Feb. 15, 2022.

Meanwhile, Genuino was acquitted of the second case filed by the ombudsman on the violation of Section 3 (h) of RA 3019 due to the prosecution’s failure to prove his direct or indirect interest in the subject transaction.