Osmeña, gov’s daughter trade barbs over fund controversy

CEBU — A multimillion-peso fund controversy involving a non-government organization (NGO) has spiraled into a verbal tussle between Vice Gov. John Gregory "John-John" Osmeña and provincial consultant Gwendolyn Garcia, who are pitted in the gubernatorial race.

Osmeña has accused Garcia of orchestrating the spurious transaction. "I see where the paper work comes from. I see Gwen’s fingerprints. She is the one behind this, not me," he said.

For her part, Garcia, daughter of Gov. Pablo Garcia, said in the dialect, "I am not inclined to engage in a cockfight with the vice governor. Why do I have to complicate things and forward the papers to the vice governor when I can easily forward it directly to my father? We can do that anytime under the existing funds of the Office of the Governor."

Discretionary funds amounting to P5 million were reportedly released to Perdido Lex Foundation, an NGO registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) which gives out scholarships to out-of-school youths.

The vice governor’s office was the one which allegedly released the funds.

Osmeña, however, cried foul, suspecting that the governor framed him up when the latter increased his P2-million Countryside Development Fund to P5 million last year.

Osmeña said he was already suspicious of the unusual increase in his fund. The governor reportedly told him that he and Gwendolyn were "online."

"I have never ever been accused of graft and corruption before and I am not the type of guy," he said.

If the foundation is bogus, he said he would not have anything to do with it because only the governor has control over budget releases.

A memorandum of agreement was reportedly entered into by the provincial government and the Perdido Lex Foundation. The signatories were Garcia and the foundation’s president, Milagros Herrera.

When confronted, both Osmeña and Garcia denied having known Herrera in the first place.

Sniping at Osmeña for accusing the Garcias of framing him up, the governor said, "You (Osmeña) should know the party to whom you have given the funds."

But Osmeña said he does not know the foundation’s incorporators, except for Veronica Ceceres, who happens to be his cook.

Under the agreement, the provincial government will extend financial assistance to the foundation, with the funds going to a computer education program for out-of-school youths.

Under the agreement, Perdido would submit an accounting or liquidation report. But since the funds were released in December 2002, no such liquidation report has been submitted. — Freeman News Service