10 gov’t men spent P218M for ‘info ads’ – “shoot on sight” says senator defensor-santiago
Ten government officials spent a whopping P218 million in public funds since last year for “infomercials” that they starred in and which Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago insisted was nothing but
senator miriam defensor-santiago
premature campaigning for the 2010 elections.
In a privilege speech at the Senate, Santiago called these government officials “rhinoceros” for their “greed for and abuse of public funds.”
The rhinoceros, she said, is a “powerful, herbivarous, thick-skinned perissodactyl mammal with two horns” that had become a “template for Cabinet members and other executive officials who use public funds, or gifts from so-called friends to campaign for next year’s elections.”
“They are all thick-skinned and should be shot on sight,” Santiago said.
She identified the spenders as Augusto Syjuco, chair of the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA); Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay; Vice President Noli de Castro; Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. chair Efraim Genuino; and Health Secretary Francisco Duque.
Also on Santiago’s list were Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chair Bayani Fernando, Education Secretary Jesli Lapuz, Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane, Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman, and Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno.
Santiago also mentioned Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr., who came out with infomercials (informative commercials) “paid for by friends” but which, she stressed, constituted indirect bribery.
Quoting a report submitted to her by the Commission on Audit (COA), Santiago said that the Cabinet members spent P117.7 million in infomercials for 2008-2009 and P100.4 million for this year alone, or a grand total of P218 million.
For 2008-2009, this was how they spent for infomercials:
- Syjuco (P28.3 million), Binay (P23.4 million)
- De Castro (P18.1 million
- Genuino (P14.1 million)
- Duque (P13.2 million)
- Fernando (P7.4 million)
- Lapuz (P5.7 million)
- Ebdane (P3.8 million)
- Pangandaman (P2.4 million)
- Puno (P900,000).
For this year alone, the top three spenders were
- Binay (P23.4 million)
- Syjuco (P22.5 million)
- De Castro (P18.1 million).
Quoting a report submitted to her by the Commission on Audit (COA), Santiago said that the Cabinet members spent P117.7 million in infomercials for 2008-2009 and P100.4 million for this year alone, or a grand total of P218 million.
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I wonder why she did not bother to include Mr. Villar in here. She has been a big supporter of Villar.
I think Duque’s is forgivable to some extent due to WHO and the AH1N1 scare. The rest are iffy.
Binay’s Makati ads are not excusable. I am not sure why the number 339 is all of a sudden a cause for national celebration throughout the country. Why broadcast the 339th anniversary of Makati to national audiences? Why this year and not the years before? And what’s with all these Binay for President ads all around Makati? They were paid for by Bgy. San Antonio and by some odd event Binay is a resident of that area so he cannot possibly pretend to be blind. He is the mayor and he wants to be president.
Overall, all of them should be investigated.
the 10 men are government men – men who are cabinet members or heads of government agencies who spent governement money on these ads.
the ads were disguised as “infomercials” – ads that talk about the government agencies and government services that these med did for the agencies the head or functions they perform.
they spent tax payers meney for their candidacy. villar spent his own money.