MANILA – Health (DOH) secretary Francisco Duque III, who chairs the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) board, has been tagged as the “godfather of mafia” in the state insurer.
“Maituturing ko po na siya po ang godfather po ng mafia,” former PhilHealth anti-fraud officer Thorrsson Montes Keith said during the Senate hearing on Tuesday
Keith, one of the whistleblowers, claimed that Duque did not do anything to stop the controversial Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM) system.
“Doon po sa IRM siya po ang chairman, as a chairman [ng PhilHealth Board] mayroon pong due diligence na gagawin ang isang chairman and considering na he’s a doctor and mayroon siyang institutional knowlege sa pamamalakad sa PhilHealth,” said Keith.
He added that Duque, who held various key positions in the PhilHealth management since 2001, could have easily spotted the irregularities in the IRM. It was also Duque who approved the appointment of the executive officials who are allegedly members of the mafia.
Duque, who attended the Senate hearing for the first time virtually, denied the allegations of Keith, which he described as “absolutely malicious” and “without basis.”
PhilHealth regional vice president Dennis Adre, for his part, said Duque ordered the distribution of five million health cards to make up for the survey lead of the late Fernando Poe Jr. over then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo during the 2004 elections.
“That was the first time that the financial statement of PhilHealth had been window-dressed,” Adre said. “They had to make up for the losses that were incurred for the non-payment of premiums during the Plan 5 million.”
Duque explained that the PhilHealth cards were distributed based on an executive order by Arroyo, and cases subsequently filed against him and other officials were later dismissed by the Ombudsman.
Sen. Grace Poe criticized how PhilHealth was allegedly used by the Arroyo administration for the elections as the former president was seeking a fresh six-year term after taking over from deposed President Joseph Estrada in 2001.
“Parang binibili mo na rin ‘yung boto sa ganung klaseng paraan,” said Poe, whose father lost to Arroyo in the controversial 2004 presidential race./PN
